First Foundation Advisors Lowers Position in The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC)

First Foundation Advisors reduced its stake in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 98 shares during the quarter. First Foundation Advisors’ holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group were worth $351,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PNC. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 2,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its stake in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,787 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $537,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. 83.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The PNC Financial Services Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PNC opened at $151.99 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $179.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $190.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.04. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $143.52 and a 12 month high of $216.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.51. The PNC Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 11.12% and a net margin of 17.10%. The company had revenue of $5.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The PNC Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 16th will be paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 16th. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.21%. The PNC Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.55%.

Insider Activity

In other The PNC Financial Services Group news, CEO William S. Demchak sold 1,242 shares of The PNC Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.11, for a total value of $251,020.62. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 522,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,620,058.57. The trade was a 0.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,420 shares of company stock valued at $2,276,870. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PNC has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $212.50 to $189.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $188.00 to $179.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $211.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $235.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, The PNC Financial Services Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $203.47.

About The PNC Financial Services Group

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc operates as a diversified financial services company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Retail Banking, Corporate & Institutional Banking, and Asset Management Group segments. The company's Retail Banking segment offers checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposit; residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, auto loans, credit cards, education loans, and personal and small business loans and lines of credit; and brokerage, insurance, and investment and cash management services.