Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Time to Buy?

Shares of Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) saw strong trading volume on Monday . 144,630 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 34% from the previous session’s volume of 107,993 shares.The stock last traded at $104.8150 and had previously closed at $104.82.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PFBC shares. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Preferred Bank from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Preferred Bank from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.00.

Preferred Bank Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $96.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.81 and a beta of 0.56.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $2.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $69.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $71.76 million. Preferred Bank had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 17.52%. On average, analysts predict that Preferred Bank will post 10.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Preferred Bank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 7th. Preferred Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 29.96%.

Institutional Trading of Preferred Bank

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Preferred Bank by 1,224.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 1,992.0% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 523 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank in the 3rd quarter valued at $70,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank during the fourth quarter worth $91,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 192.1% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the bank’s stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.77% of the company’s stock.

Preferred Bank Company Profile

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ: PFBC) is a California-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Los Angeles. The institution offers a full range of banking products and services to businesses and individuals, with a particular emphasis on commercial real estate lending, business banking, treasury management and deposit accounts. Preferred Bank operates through branch offices across Southern California and national loan production offices in major U.S. markets.

The bank’s core lending portfolio focuses on commercial real estate acquisition, development and investment properties.