StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Pacific Premier Bancorp (NASDAQ:PPBI)

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp (NASDAQ:PPBI) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, DA Davidson cut shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.25.

Pacific Premier Bancorp Stock Performance

Pacific Premier Bancorp stock opened at $21.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.20. Pacific Premier Bancorp has a twelve month low of $18.06 and a twelve month high of $30.28. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 12.87 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Pacific Premier Bancorp (NASDAQ:PPBI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.07. Pacific Premier Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.43% and a net margin of 17.54%. The company had revenue of $144.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $143.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. Research analysts expect that Pacific Premier Bancorp will post 1.34 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Pacific Premier Bancorp news, COO Edward Earl Wilcox sold 14,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.28, for a total value of $294,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 140,283 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,844,939.24. This represents a 9.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Premier Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Pacific Premier Bancorp by 47.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 741 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp by 158.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 1,853 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp by 729.4% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 2,655 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Pacific Premier Bancorp by 11.0% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 546 shares during the period. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Pacific Premier Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $158,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.11% of the company’s stock.

Pacific Premier Bancorp Company Profile

Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Pacific Premier Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts deposit products, which includes checking, money market, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio includes commercial real estate owner and non-owner-occupied, multifamily, construction and land, franchise real estate secured, and small business administration (SBA); revolving lines of credit, term loans, seasonal loans, and loans secured by liquid collateral; one-to-four family and home equity lines of credit loans; and small balance personal unsecured loans and savings account secured loans.