Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB) Lowered to “Sell” Rating by StockNews.com

Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Prosperity Bancshares from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Stephens increased their target price on Prosperity Bancshares from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America raised Prosperity Bancshares from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Prosperity Bancshares from $102.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price target on Prosperity Bancshares from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.50.

Prosperity Bancshares Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of PB traded up $0.72 on Wednesday, reaching $71.34. The stock had a trading volume of 866,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 523,675. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.80 billion, a PE ratio of 14.10, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $76.58 and a 200 day moving average of $76.21. Prosperity Bancshares has a twelve month low of $57.16 and a twelve month high of $86.76.

Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.04. Prosperity Bancshares had a return on equity of 6.64% and a net margin of 26.79%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prosperity Bancshares will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prosperity Bancshares news, Director Ned S. Holmes sold 500 shares of Prosperity Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total value of $38,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 110,315 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,388,352.60. The trade was a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 5,500 shares of company stock valued at $418,095 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 4.28% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prosperity Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PB. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Prosperity Bancshares by 487.5% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in Prosperity Bancshares by 368.5% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 520 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Prosperity Bancshares by 102.7% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 592 shares of the bank’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Prosperity Bancshares by 190.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 815 shares of the bank’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Prosperity Bancshares by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 844 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Prosperity Bancshares

Prosperity Bancshares, Inc operates as bank holding company for the Prosperity Bank that provides financial products and services to businesses and consumers. It accepts various deposit products, such as demand, savings, money market, and time accounts, as well as and certificates of deposit. The company also offers 1-4 family residential mortgage, commercial real estate and multifamily residential, commercial and industrial, agricultural, and non-real estate agricultural loans, as well as construction, land development, and other land loans; consumer loans, including automobile, recreational vehicle, boat, home improvement, personal, and deposit account collateralized loans; term loans and lines of credit; and consumer durables and home equity loans, as well as loans for working capital, business expansion, and purchase of equipment and machinery.