NatWest Group (NYSE:NWG) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $12.08 and last traded at $12.05, with a volume of 14829314 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of NatWest Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

NatWest Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $10.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.01, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.30.

NatWest Group (NYSE:NWG) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $4.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.75 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that NatWest Group plc will post 1.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NatWest Group Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of NatWest Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NWG. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in NatWest Group by 121.3% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,499 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in NatWest Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in NatWest Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in NatWest Group by 161.4% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,894 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,787 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in NatWest Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 1.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About NatWest Group

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.