ING Group, N.V. $ING Shares Sold by Blue Trust Inc.

Blue Trust Inc. decreased its position in shares of ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING) by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 20,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,940 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in ING Group were worth $454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ING. Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in ING Group during the first quarter worth about $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of ING Group by 135.3% during the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 912 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in ING Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in ING Group in the second quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of ING Group in the 1st quarter valued at $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 4.49% of the company’s stock.

ING Group Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of ING opened at $24.01 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. ING Group, N.V. has a 1 year low of $15.09 and a 1 year high of $26.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.56 billion, a PE ratio of 11.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.07.

ING Group (NYSE:ING) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.40 billion. ING Group had a net margin of 27.28% and a return on equity of 11.62%. Analysts forecast that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ING Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $0.4002 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 450.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. ING Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cfra Research raised ING Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of ING Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Barclays raised shares of ING Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of ING Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ING Group has an average rating of “Buy”.

About ING Group

ING Groep N.V. provides various banking products and services in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through five segments: Retail Netherlands, Retail Belgium, Retail Germany, Retail Other, and Wholesale Banking. The company accepts current and savings accounts.