ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $33.12 and last traded at $32.4750, with a volume of 204969 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.54.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CNOB. Weiss Ratings upgraded ConnectOne Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Piper Sandler began coverage on ConnectOne Bancorp in a research report on Monday, March 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on ConnectOne Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Hovde Group increased their price objective on ConnectOne Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.25.

ConnectOne Bancorp Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $29.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.94. The firm has a market cap of $1.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.76 and a beta of 1.06.

ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.06. ConnectOne Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.17% and a net margin of 13.21%.The business had revenue of $116.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.59 million. Equities research analysts predict that ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current year.

ConnectOne Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $0.195 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from ConnectOne Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. ConnectOne Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 45.09%.

Institutional Trading of ConnectOne Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 7.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 74,053 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,800,000 after purchasing an additional 5,205 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in ConnectOne Bancorp by 4.4% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 21,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $524,000 after buying an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in ConnectOne Bancorp by 374.7% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 64,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,569,000 after buying an additional 50,942 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in ConnectOne Bancorp by 32.7% in the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 13,709 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 3,379 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in ConnectOne Bancorp by 14.1% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 111,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,575,000 after buying an additional 13,729 shares during the period. 67.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ConnectOne Bancorp

ConnectOne Bancorp is a New Jersey‐based bank holding company whose primary subsidiary, ConnectOne Bank, offers a suite of commercial banking services to small and medium‐sized businesses, professionals and individuals. Established in 2005 and headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, the company seeks to deliver customized lending and deposit solutions through a network of branches across northern New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area.

The company’s lending portfolio centers on commercial real estate financing, construction lending, owner‐occupied real estate loans and working capital lines of credit.