Northern Trust Corp Lowers Position in Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN)

Northern Trust Corp decreased its position in shares of Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 58,150 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,907 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.72% of Middlefield Banc worth $1,631,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MBCN. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Middlefield Banc by 122.4% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,319 shares of the bank’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 726 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Middlefield Banc by 127.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,180 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 6,832 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 11.2% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 15,220 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $427,000 after buying an additional 1,536 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 17,265 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 729 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Middlefield Banc by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 18,308 shares of the bank’s stock worth $514,000 after buying an additional 1,392 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

Middlefield Banc Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:MBCN opened at $29.08 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Middlefield Banc Corp. has a 12-month low of $20.61 and a 12-month high of $34.00. The company has a market cap of $235.00 million, a PE ratio of 15.15 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $26.91 and a 200 day moving average of $27.43.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $18.04 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.23 million. Middlefield Banc had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 7.47%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Middlefield Banc Corp. will post 1.96 EPS for the current year.

Middlefield Banc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. Middlefield Banc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Hovde Group lowered their target price on shares of Middlefield Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Middlefield Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th.

About Middlefield Banc

Middlefield Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, small business owners, and retail customers in northeastern and central Ohio. It offers checking, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, time certificates of deposit, commercial loans, real estate loans, various consumer loans, safe deposit facilities, and travelers' checks.