Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Sees Large Volume Increase – Here’s Why

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) shares saw strong trading volume on Monday . 83,987 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 20% from the previous session’s volume of 104,353 shares.The stock last traded at $94.8650 and had previously closed at $95.47.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Preferred Bank from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on Preferred Bank in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Brean Capital downgraded Preferred Bank from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Preferred Bank in a report on Monday, January 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.00.

Preferred Bank Stock Up 0.3%

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $91.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.64. The stock has a market cap of $1.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $2.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $69.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $71.76 million. Preferred Bank had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 17.52%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Preferred Bank will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 7th were given a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Preferred Bank’s payout ratio is presently 29.96%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Preferred Bank

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 494,827 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,727,000 after buying an additional 16,348 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC grew its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 356,065 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,623,000 after buying an additional 18,309 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 337,804 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,534,000 after buying an additional 45,946 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 19.1% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 206,622 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $19,511,000 after buying an additional 33,124 shares during the period. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 199,419 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,831,000 after buying an additional 33,157 shares during the period. 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.