Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs Sells 3,000 Shares of Stock

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.63, for a total value of $85,890.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 177,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,083,256.50. This trade represents a 1.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp stock opened at $28.55 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $27.42 and a 200 day moving average of $26.54. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.77 and a 12 month high of $29.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $393.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.94 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $32.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.54 million. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 18.54%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 3rd were given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on FMAO. Weiss Ratings lowered Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $28.50 target price (up from $28.00) on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Hovde Group dropped their price objective on Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from $30.00 to $28.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Farmers & Merchants Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Farmers & Merchants Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 2.1% in the second quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 19,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 36.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 124.6% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 25,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $637,000 after acquiring an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. 23.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Company Profile

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) is the bank holding company for Farmers & Merchants Bank of Central California, a community-focused institution headquartered in Los Banos, California. The bank traces its roots to 1916 and has grown to serve individuals, businesses and agricultural enterprises throughout the western San Joaquin Valley. Operating with a commitment to local decision-making, the company emphasizes personalized service and close ties to the communities in which it operates.

Through its banking subsidiary, Farmers & Merchants offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, online and mobile banking platforms, and merchant services.