Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Makes New $789,000 Investment in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. $CFR

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 5,757 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,283 shares of the bank’s stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management increased its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 18,134 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,296,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 6.0% during the first quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,726 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 248 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.8% in the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,921 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,771,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. 86.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

NYSE:CFR opened at $163.75 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $149.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.54. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 12-month low of $119.00 and a 12-month high of $166.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The bank reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 15.58% and a net margin of 22.86%.The company had revenue of $574.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $587.28 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.30 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 10.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This is an increase from Cullen/Frost Bankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CFR has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cullen/Frost Bankers presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $152.42.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Carol Jean Severyn sold 837 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.29, for a total value of $124,118.73. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,885,062.48. The trade was a 6.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Profile

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc is the holding company for Frost Bank, a Texas-chartered financial institution whose origins date back to 1868 in San Antonio. As one of the oldest banking organizations in the state, it offers a broad range of services to individuals, small and large businesses, and institutional clients. Core banking activities include commercial lending, deposit services, cash management and trade finance, while consumer products cover residential mortgages, personal lines of credit and home equity loans.

Beyond traditional banking, the company provides comprehensive treasury and equipment leasing solutions tailored to support working capital and capital expenditure requirements.