Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) Hits New 1-Year High After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shore Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:SHBI)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $23.72 and last traded at $23.72, with a volume of 55869 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $22.90.

The bank reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.10. Shore Bancshares had a net margin of 19.15% and a return on equity of 12.24%. The business had revenue of $61.84 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.42 million.

Shore Bancshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 3rd. This is a positive change from Shore Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. Shore Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.79%.

Shore Bancshares declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $30.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to repurchase up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SHBI. Zacks Research cut shares of Shore Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Shore Bancshares in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $20.00 target price on shares of Shore Bancshares in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Shore Bancshares from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Shore Bancshares presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Shore Bancshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SHBI. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Shore Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Shore Bancshares in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Shore Bancshares by 98.9% in the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,124 shares of the bank’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 1,553 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in shares of Shore Bancshares by 207.4% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 4,138 shares of the bank’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 2,792 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Shore Bancshares by 20.1% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,448 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 743 shares during the period. 59.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Shore Bancshares Stock Up 3.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $789.99 million, a PE ratio of 11.92 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $21.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.94.

About Shore Bancshares

Shore Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: SHBI) is the bank holding company for Shore Community Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Mount Holly, New Jersey. The company provides a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals and businesses, including deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage financing, and cash management solutions. Through its branch network, Shore Bancshares focuses on delivering community-oriented banking services with an emphasis on personalized customer relationships.

Shore Community Bank’s lending portfolio includes commercial real estate, construction loans, agricultural loans, small business loans under government-sponsored programs, and conventional residential mortgages.