Republic Bancorp (NASDAQ:RBCAA) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Republic Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:RBCAA) saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday . Approximately 56,039 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 15% from the previous session’s volume of 48,639 shares.The stock last traded at $69.18 and had previously closed at $69.64.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on RBCAA. Wall Street Zen cut Republic Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Republic Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

Republic Bancorp Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $70.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of 10.30 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Republic Bancorp (NASDAQ:RBCAA) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $94.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.50 million. Republic Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 25.19%.

Republic Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.495 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 20th. This represents a $1.98 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. This is an increase from Republic Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Republic Bancorp’s payout ratio is 29.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Republic Bancorp

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Republic Bancorp by 93.8% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 42,930 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,964,000 after buying an additional 20,781 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Republic Bancorp by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 73,735 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,087,000 after acquiring an additional 6,189 shares in the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Republic Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,102,000. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Republic Bancorp by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,952 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $480,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Republic Bancorp by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 123,097 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,492,000 after acquiring an additional 6,189 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.37% of the company’s stock.

Republic Bancorp Company Profile

Republic Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that operates through its principal subsidiary, Republic Bank & Trust Company. The company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services tailored to individuals, small businesses and middle‐market clients. Core offerings include deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, treasury and cash-management services, mortgage financing, SBA lending and wealth management solutions. Republic Bancorp also supports specialized financing needs through equipment leasing and small business advisory services.

Republic Bancorp’s branch network spans key markets in the U.S.