NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG) Short Interest Update

NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG) was the target of a large decline in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,040,000 shares, a decline of 27.9% from the February 28th total of 5,600,000 shares. Approximately 0.1% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 4,920,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.8 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas lowered shares of NatWest Group from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Peel Hunt cut shares of NatWest Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy”.

NatWest Group Stock Down 1.4 %

NYSE NWG traded down $0.17 on Friday, reaching $11.98. The company had a trading volume of 4,530,736 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,012,134. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company’s fifty day moving average is $11.45 and its 200 day moving average is $10.37. NatWest Group has a 52-week low of $6.70 and a 52-week high of $12.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.22.

NatWest Group (NYSE:NWG) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $4.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.75 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that NatWest Group will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NatWest Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.3899 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from NatWest Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.36. NatWest Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.88%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NatWest Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NWG. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in NatWest Group during the fourth quarter worth $27,339,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of NatWest Group by 45.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,243,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,982,000 after purchasing an additional 1,014,926 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 25.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,712,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,924,000 after buying an additional 944,464 shares during the last quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in NatWest Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $9,578,000. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in NatWest Group by 57.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,988,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,611,000 after buying an additional 721,578 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.27% of the company’s stock.

NatWest Group Company Profile

NatWest Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services to personal, commercial, corporate, and institutional customers in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates through Retail Banking, Private Banking, and Commercial & Institutional segments.