Insider Buying: Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) Director Buys $11,598.00 in Stock

Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) Director Dwight Smith acquired 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The shares were bought at an average price of $38.66 per share, for a total transaction of $11,598.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 10,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $408,094.96. This trade represents a 2.93% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEBO traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $38.45. The company had a trading volume of 162,877 shares, compared to its average volume of 302,809. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $38.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.89. Peoples Bancorp Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.01 and a 12 month high of $42.29. The firm has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.34 and a beta of 0.62.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The bank reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $124.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $123.40 million. Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 19.76%. As a group, analysts predict that Peoples Bancorp Inc. will post 3.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peoples Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. Peoples Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEBO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research upgraded Peoples Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a report on Monday, October 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Peoples Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PEBO. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Peoples Bancorp by 39.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,558 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $150,000 after buying an additional 1,301 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Peoples Bancorp in the second quarter valued at about $190,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Peoples Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $201,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.68% of the company’s stock.

About Peoples Bancorp

Peoples Bancorp Inc is a financial holding company headquartered in Marietta, Ohio. Through its principal subsidiary, Peoples Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations and public-sector customers.

Peoples Bank offers deposit accounts, residential and commercial lending, consumer loans, credit cards, treasury management and other financial services. The company also provides wealth management, trust and investment services, as well as insurance products through affiliated operations.

Founded in 1902, Peoples Bancorp serves communities primarily in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia through a network of banking offices and digital banking channels.