StockNews.com Lowers Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Wednesday.

Oak Valley Bancorp Trading Up 3.8 %

Shares of OVLY opened at $24.71 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $24.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.87. Oak Valley Bancorp has a 12 month low of $22.49 and a 12 month high of $30.70. The company has a market capitalization of $204.85 million, a PE ratio of 6.61 and a beta of 0.37.

Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Oak Valley Bancorp had a net margin of 39.97% and a return on equity of 21.84%. The business had revenue of $19.67 million for the quarter.

Oak Valley Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 9th. Investors of record on Monday, January 29th were paid a dividend of $0.225 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 26th. This is a positive change from Oak Valley Bancorp’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.12. This represents a yield of 1.51%. Oak Valley Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Daniel J. Leonard acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $26.99 per share, for a total transaction of $26,990.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 58,223 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,571,438.77. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 2,875 shares of company stock worth $73,368. 19.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oak Valley Bancorp

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Oak Valley Bancorp by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG grew its position in Oak Valley Bancorp by 8.5% during the first quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 7,956 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Oak Valley Bancorp by 4.5% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 20,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $489,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Oak Valley Bancorp by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 370,058 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,083,000 after acquiring an additional 1,043 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Oak Valley Bancorp by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,264,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651 shares during the last quarter. 30.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Oak Valley Bancorp

Oak Valley Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Oak Valley Community Bank that provides a range of commercial banking services to individuals and small to medium-sized businesses in the Central Valley and the Eastern Sierras. The company's deposits products include checking and savings, money market, health savings, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.