Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Sees Large Volume Increase – Still a Buy?

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) shares saw strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 76,146 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 29% from the previous session’s volume of 106,983 shares.The stock last traded at $102.45 and had previously closed at $103.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFBC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Preferred Bank from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Stephens boosted their price target on Preferred Bank from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.25.

Preferred Bank Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $105.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 9.37 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.13. Preferred Bank had a return on equity of 17.27% and a net margin of 26.54%.The firm had revenue of $73.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $73.60 million. Research analysts expect that Preferred Bank will post 10.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 7th were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Preferred Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 29.25%.

Institutional Trading of Preferred Bank

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFBC. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Preferred Bank during the second quarter worth about $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 1,224.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 1,992.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 523 shares of the bank’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $70,000. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank during the 4th quarter worth approximately $91,000. 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.