Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) Stock Crosses Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO)’s share price passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $38.44 and traded as high as $39.07. Peoples Bancorp shares last traded at $38.81, with a volume of 404,632 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PEBO shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Peoples Bancorp from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Zacks Research raised Peoples Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.00.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Up 1.1%

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.01. 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 market capitalization of $1.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.45 and a beta of 0.62.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 20th. The bank reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $124.52 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $123.40 million. Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 19.76%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Peoples Bancorp Inc. will post 3.74 EPS for the current year.

Peoples Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. Peoples Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 49.56%.

Insider Activity at Peoples Bancorp

In related news, EVP Mark Augenstein sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.88, for a total value of $75,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,885 shares in the company, valued at $942,643.80. This trade represents a 7.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Matthew Edgell sold 3,000 shares of Peoples Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.27, for a total transaction of $123,810.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $832,952.41. The trade was a 12.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,650 shares of company stock worth $300,588. Company insiders own 3.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 103.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 12,069 shares of the bank’s stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 6,145 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in Peoples Bancorp by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 8,504 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,023 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Peoples Bancorp by 87.0% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,307 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the period. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC raised its position in Peoples Bancorp by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 14,754 shares of the bank’s stock worth $567,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.68% of the company’s stock.

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 public-sector customers.

Peoples Bank offers deposit accounts, residential and commercial lending, consumer loans, credit cards, treasury management and other financial services. The company also provides wealth management, trust and investment services, as well as insurance products through affiliated 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.