Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on SMFG. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Trading Down 1.7%

SMFG opened at $19.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $11.83 and a fifty-two week high of $24.33. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $21.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.34.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The bank reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.93 billion. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 9.38%. As a group, research analysts predict that Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group will post 0.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 21,541,139 shares of the bank’s stock worth $416,390,000 after buying an additional 404,435 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 10,997,774 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $212,587,000 after buying an additional 161,026 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 2.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,743,128 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $96,140,000 after acquiring an additional 147,963 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,886,033 shares of the bank’s stock worth $48,312,000 after acquiring an additional 9,022 shares during the period. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,151,904 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,596,000 after acquiring an additional 19,520 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 3.85% of the company’s stock.

About Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc (SMFG) is a Tokyo-based financial holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services through a network of domestic and international subsidiaries. Established in 2002 as a holding company for the Sumitomo Mitsui banking operations, SMFG’s core banking business is conducted primarily through its main operating bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), alongside other affiliates covering trust banking, securities, leasing and consumer finance.

The group’s product and service mix spans corporate and commercial banking, retail deposit and loan services, trade and project finance, cash management, syndicated lending, foreign exchange and treasury services, and capital markets and investment banking activities through its securities arm.