Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Stock Price Up 4.6% After Earnings Beat

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) rose 4.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $91.54 and last traded at $90.56. Approximately 18,102 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 93,095 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.60.

The bank reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.27. Preferred Bank had a return on equity of 16.91% and a net margin of 25.67%.The business had revenue of $74.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.74 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 7th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Preferred Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on PFBC. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Preferred Bank from $96.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Preferred Bank in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on Preferred Bank from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Preferred Bank

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 1,224.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank during the first quarter worth approximately $55,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 16.2% during the second quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 845 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 350.7% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,316 shares of the bank’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Finally, Rexford Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank during the second quarter worth approximately $128,000. Institutional investors own 72.77% of the company’s stock.

Preferred Bank Trading Up 5.1%

The company has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.25 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $91.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Preferred Bank Company Profile

Preferred Bank provides various commercial banking products and services to small and mid-sized businesses and their owners, entrepreneurs, real estate developers and investors, professionals, and high net worth individuals. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts; fixed-rate and fixed maturity retail, and non-retail certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts.