NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG) Short Interest Down 27.9% in March

NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of 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. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,920,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days. Approximately 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NatWest Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWG. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of NatWest Group by 121.3% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,499 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in NatWest Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in shares of NatWest Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 161.4% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,787 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of NatWest Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 1.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NatWest Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NWG traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $11.99. 3,168,341 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,023,945. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. NatWest Group has a 52 week low of $6.75 and a 52 week high of $12.65.

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

NatWest Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Investors 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 yield of 3.8%. This is an increase from NatWest Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.36. NatWest Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on NWG shares. BNP Paribas cut NatWest Group from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Peel Hunt downgraded shares of NatWest Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NatWest Group has an average rating of “Buy”.

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.