Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Lowers Position in Regions Financial Co. (NYSE:RF)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. cut its position in shares of Regions Financial Co. (NYSE:RF) by 10.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,534,938 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 287,482 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Regions Financial were worth $50,800,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Regions Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Regions Financial by 86.5% in the fourth quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,399 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Regions Financial during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Glassman Wealth Services boosted its position in Regions Financial by 163.3% during the 4th quarter. Glassman Wealth Services now owns 1,559 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 967 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Regions Financial by 75.6% during the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on RF shares. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Regions Financial from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Regions Financial from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Regions Financial from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Regions Financial from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Regions Financial from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Regions Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.51.

Regions Financial Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:RF opened at $21.50 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $20.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.18. Regions Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $13.72 and a 12 month high of $22.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.03. Regions Financial had a net margin of 18.91% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Regions Financial Co. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Regions Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.65%. This is an increase from Regions Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. Regions Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.35%.

Regions Financial 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.