Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $31.32 and last traded at $30.9520, with a volume of 1092452 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.82.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore downgraded shares of Regions Financial from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $27.00 to $29.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $27.00 price target (down previously from $30.00) on shares of Regions Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Regions Financial from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $31.00 price objective on Regions Financial in a report on Monday, January 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Regions Financial in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.84.

Regions Financial Trading Up 0.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $27.08 billion, a PE ratio of 13.47, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $28.06 and its 200 day moving average is $26.45.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.04). Regions Financial had a return on equity of 12.55% and a net margin of 22.44%.The business had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.56 earnings per share. Regions Financial’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Regions Financial Corporation will post 2.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Regions Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.265 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Regions Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 46.29%.

Regions Financial declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 12.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Regions Financial news, EVP William D. Ritter sold 36,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.78, for a total value of $1,036,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 17,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $505,635.82. This represents a 67.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Regions Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RF. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Regions Financial by 7.2% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,152 shares of the bank’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,278 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 40.7% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 76,797 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,669,000 after buying an additional 22,216 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Regions Financial in the second quarter worth about $44,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Regions Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in Regions Financial by 37.7% during the 2nd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 19,080 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 5,225 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

About Regions Financial

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF) is a U.S. bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, that provides a broad range of banking and financial services. Its primary banking subsidiary, Regions Bank, serves retail and commercial customers through a combination of branch and ATM networks, digital channels and relationship-based delivery. The company offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage origination and servicing, and payment and treasury services.

In addition to core banking, Regions offers wealth management, trust and brokerage services, insurance solutions, and capital markets capabilities to corporate and institutional clients.