Keefe, Bruyette, & Woods Reiterates Market Perform on Cullen/Frost Bankers (CFR)

Keefe, Bruyette, & Woods is out with a research report this morning, where it reiterates its Market Perform rating on Cullen/Frost Bankers Inc. CFR; it has a $52.00 price target on the stock. The KBW analysts said that the company’s most recent earnings report represented a “solid beat.” They noted that credit was positive this quarter as “the LLP, NPAs, and NCOs were down from the previous quarter.” The analysts also cited continued strong deposit growth, which is building the company’s liquidity base. Be that as it may, the company did say that loan demand has been and remains weak. The KBW analysts said, “With a 9.1% TCE ratio, capital remains a strength of CFR. Raising estimates.” With $16.3 billion in assets and $8.4 billion in loans, CFR is the sole survivor of the top 10 TX institutions from the tumultuous 1980s. CFR is largely a commercial lender and operates in most of the larger MSAs in TX.