ECB Bancorp (NASDAQ:ECBK) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

ECB Bancorp (NASDAQ:ECBK) posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, Zacks reports. ECB Bancorp had a return on equity of 4.59% and a net margin of 9.78%.

ECB Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ECBK traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $18.67. 3,711 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,682. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $17.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.30. The stock has a market cap of $163.92 million, a P/E ratio of 20.08 and a beta of 0.49. ECB Bancorp has a one year low of $14.82 and a one year high of $20.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Maura Ellen Sullivan bought 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $18.50 per share, with a total value of $40,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,450. This trade represents a 62.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 10.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ECBK. Covalent Partners LLC bought a new position in ECB Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $574,000. Barclays PLC increased its position in ECB Bancorp by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $207,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its position in ECB Bancorp by 40.5% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 2,580 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of ECB Bancorp by 99.3% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 20,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 10,327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ECB Bancorp by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 43,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 8,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 30.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded ECB Bancorp from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

About ECB Bancorp

ECB Bancorp, Inc operating as a holding company for Everett Co-operative Bank that provides various banking products and services. The company accepts various deposit products, including certificate of deposit accounts, IRAs, money market accounts, savings accounts, demand deposit accounts, and interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing checking accounts. It also offers one- to four-family residential real estate, commercial real estate and multifamily real estate, construction and land, commercial, and consumer loans, as well as home equity loans and lines of credit.