Vise Technologies Inc. Has $316,000 Stake in Regions Financial Co. (NYSE:RF)

Vise Technologies Inc. grew its stake in Regions Financial Co. (NYSE:RF) by 51.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,431 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 4,569 shares during the quarter. Vise Technologies Inc.’s holdings in Regions Financial were worth $316,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Regions Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $279,103,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Regions Financial by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,468,674 shares of the bank’s stock worth $363,823,000 after buying an additional 1,963,954 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Regions Financial by 52.7% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 5,522,612 shares of the bank’s stock worth $129,892,000 after buying an additional 1,907,121 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Regions Financial by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 29,183,580 shares of the bank’s stock worth $686,398,000 after buying an additional 1,396,647 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Regions Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,480,000. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Regions Financial Trading Up 2.0%

RF opened at $21.67 on Wednesday. Regions Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $17.72 and a 1-year high of $27.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $19.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $20.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.07.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Regions Financial had a net margin of 20.20% and a return on equity of 12.83%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Regions Financial Co. will post 2.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Regions Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Regions Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Regions Financial from $29.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Regions Financial from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $31.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a “hold” rating and a $24.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Regions Financial from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Joia M. Johnson bought 2,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $21.18 per share, for a total transaction of $48,714.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,486 shares in the company, valued at $370,353.48. The trade was a 15.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Regions Financial Company Profile

Regions Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides banking and bank-related services to individual and corporate customers. It operates through three segments: Corporate Bank, Consumer Bank, and Wealth Management. The Corporate Bank segment offers commercial banking services, such as commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, and investor real estate lending; equipment lease financing; deposit products; and securities underwriting and placement, loan syndication and placement, foreign exchange, derivatives, merger and acquisition, and other advisory services.