Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) Stock Rating Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Thursday morning,Zacks reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Peoples Bancorp from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler set a $46.00 price objective on Peoples Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on Peoples Bancorp from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.50.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of PEBO stock opened at $37.48 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $39.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.93. Peoples Bancorp has a 52 week low of $27.49 and a 52 week high of $42.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.62.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.11. Peoples Bancorp had a net margin of 19.17% and a return on equity of 10.71%. The company had revenue of $121.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $120.05 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Peoples Bancorp will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Peoples Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.5%. Peoples Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.76%.

Insider Activity at Peoples Bancorp

In other Peoples Bancorp news, Director Dwight Smith purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.81 per share, for a total transaction of $39,810.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 10,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $408,291.36. The trade was a 10.80% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Matthew Edgell sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.27, for a total transaction of $123,810.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 20,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $832,952.41. The trade was a 12.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Peoples Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PEBO. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 13.7% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 8,504 shares of the bank’s stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 1,023 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 87.0% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,307 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 608 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 14,754 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $567,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in Peoples Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $324,000. 60.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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 government entities.

Peoples Bank offers consumer and commercial deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate loans, consumer lending, mortgage services, treasury management and other business financing solutions. The company also provides wealth management, trust, investment and insurance services through affiliated or related 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.