Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) Stock Breaks Below Fifty Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF)’s stock price passed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.34 and traded as low as $28.03. Regions Financial shares last traded at $28.3250, with a volume of 8,325,155 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on RF shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Regions Financial in a research report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Regions Financial from $30.50 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Regions Financial from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. TD Cowen began coverage on Regions Financial in a report on Thursday, October 8th. They set a “hold” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Regions Financial from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 28th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.00.

Regions Financial Stock Down 0.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $24.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $28.34 and its 200-day moving average is $28.70.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.99 billion. Regions Financial had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 13.43%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Regions Financial Corporation will post 2.70 EPS for the current year.

Regions Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. Regions Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Regions Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in Regions Financial by 6.2% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 50,667,092 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,543,092,000 after purchasing an additional 2,953,594 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 75.7% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 13,358,969 shares of the bank’s stock worth $348,936,000 after purchasing an additional 5,754,487 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 1.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,827,358 shares of the bank’s stock worth $256,633,000 after purchasing an additional 140,398 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Regions Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $236,756,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Regions Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $219,068,000. Institutional investors own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

About Regions Financial

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF) is a bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. Its principal subsidiary, Regions Bank, provides banking and related financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions.

The company’s services include consumer and commercial banking, lending, mortgage banking, treasury and payment services, and wealth management. Regions also offers services such as investment and trust management through its wealth business.

Regions traces its history to First Alabama Bancshares, established in 1971, and serves customers across the South and parts of the Midwest and Texas.