Piper Sandler Initiates Coverage on Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB)

Analysts at Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) in a report released on Monday. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $14.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Piper Sandler’s target price suggests a potential upside of 8.61% from the stock’s current price.

WNEB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Western New England Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Western New England Bancorp from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.00.

Western New England Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WNEB traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $12.89. 7,728 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 64,472. Western New England Bancorp has a 52 week low of $7.63 and a 52 week high of $14.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $13.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $261.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.96 and a beta of 0.79.

Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.62 million. Western New England Bancorp had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 6.31%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Western New England Bancorp will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Western New England Bancorp

In other Western New England Bancorp news, Director Philip R. Smith sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.17, for a total value of $39,510.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,497 shares in the company, valued at $98,735.49. This trade represents a 28.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 6.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western New England Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WNEB. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its position in Western New England Bancorp by 230.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 147,356 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,770,000 after purchasing an additional 102,770 shares in the last quarter. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Western New England Bancorp in the third quarter valued at $1,592,000. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey acquired a new stake in shares of Western New England Bancorp in the second quarter worth $45,000. Teton Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western New England Bancorp during the third quarter valued at $805,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Western New England Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.95% of the company’s stock.

Western New England Bancorp Company Profile

Western New England Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Westfield, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Westfield Bank, the company provides a full suite of commercial and consumer banking services. Its operations focus on serving small to mid-sized businesses, professional practices, and individual customers, with a strategy centered on relationship-driven banking and community involvement.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, along with business cash-management solutions.