Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

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

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on SMFG. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold”.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Price Performance

SMFG opened at $20.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $134.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $19.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.45. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group has a 52-week low of $11.83 and a 52-week high of $21.54.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The bank reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $17.71 billion during 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 9.34%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group will post 0.39 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMFG. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 26.0% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 177,249 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,740,000 after buying an additional 36,522 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 40.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 18,253 shares of the bank’s stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 5,258 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 41.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,163 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 930 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 336.4% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 39,574 shares of the bank’s stock worth $610,000 after acquiring an additional 30,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 43.9% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 32,398 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $490,000 after acquiring an additional 9,876 shares in the last quarter. 3.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.