Chemung Financial (NASDAQ:CHMG) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Chemung Financial (NASDAQ:CHMG) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Chemung Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Chemung Financial from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Chemung Financial in a report on Friday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.00.

Chemung Financial Price Performance

Shares of CHMG opened at $59.30 on Tuesday. Chemung Financial has a fifty-two week low of $41.52 and a fifty-two week high of $65.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $56.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.96. The company has a market cap of $285.77 million, a P/E ratio of 18.89 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Chemung Financial (NASDAQ:CHMG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The bank reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.01. Chemung Financial had a net margin of 10.73% and a return on equity of 11.58%. The company had revenue of $30.52 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.48 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Chemung Financial will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chemung Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Chemung Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert H. Dalrymple sold 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.56, for a total transaction of $160,234.48. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,351 shares in the company, valued at $76,412.56. This represents a 67.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel D. Fariello sold 748 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.13, for a total transaction of $45,725.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $434,634.30. The trade was a 9.52% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,823 shares of company stock valued at $220,860. 12.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chemung Financial

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Chemung Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 179,669 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,026,000 after buying an additional 1,331 shares during the last quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chemung Financial by 84.9% in the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 109,336 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,101,000 after purchasing an additional 50,209 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chemung Financial by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 93,270 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,521,000 after purchasing an additional 12,917 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chemung Financial by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 77,763 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,084,000 after purchasing an additional 1,771 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Chemung Financial by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 58,671 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.50% of the company’s stock.

About Chemung Financial

Chemung Financial Corporation serves as the bank holding company for Chemung Canal Trust Company, a community bank founded in 1833 and headquartered in Elmira, New York. With deep historical roots in the Southern Tier of New York, the company has expanded its footprint to serve customers throughout the region, including northern Pennsylvania. Chemung Financial emphasizes relationship-driven banking by combining personalized service with modern delivery channels.

Through its subsidiary, Chemung Canal Trust Company, Chemung Financial offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services.