S&T Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:STBA) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

S&T Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:STBA) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $44.40.

Several brokerages have recently commented on STBA. Zacks Research upgraded shares of S&T Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on shares of S&T Bancorp from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded S&T Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of S&T Bancorp in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, DA Davidson started coverage on S&T Bancorp in a report on Wednesday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 price target for the company.

S&T Bancorp Stock Performance

STBA opened at $43.97 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. S&T Bancorp has a 52-week low of $30.84 and a 52-week high of $44.91. The firm has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.56 and a beta of 0.93. The business’s fifty day moving average is $41.87 and its 200-day moving average is $39.65.

S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89. S&T Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 23.61%.The business had revenue of $105.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $103.46 million. Sell-side analysts expect that S&T Bancorp will post 3.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&T Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 12th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. S&T Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 41.14%.

S&T Bancorp declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, January 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Key S&T Bancorp News

Here are the key news stories impacting S&T Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Hovde Group told investors it expects STBA’s stock price to rise, a bullish institutional view that can support demand among value-oriented investors. S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Hovde Group Analyst Says
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks published a feature framing S&T as an attractive dividend stock today, which may draw income-focused buyers. Why S&T Bancorp (STBA) is a Great Dividend Stock Right Now
• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson initiated coverage with a neutral/hold rating but set a $47 price target (about mid-single-digit upside vs. current levels), which can be interpreted as modest upside support for the shares. S&T Bancorp is now covered by analysts at DA Davidson (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets reported DA Davidson’s coverage initiation (neutral/hold). Coverage brings more analyst attention and may increase trading interest without delivering a strongly bullish endorsement. S&T Bancorp Now Covered by Analysts at DA Davidson
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose sharply in February — up ~23% to 990,349 shares (about 2.6% of float) with a short-interest ratio near 4.5 days — indicating increased bearish bets that can weigh on the stock or amplify volatility.
• Negative Sentiment: One brokerage published a $42.25 price target, below the current share price, signaling at least one analyst view that sees limited near-term upside. Brokerages Set S&T Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:STBA) PT at $42.25

Institutional Trading of S&T Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of S&T Bancorp by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,723,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,815,000 after acquiring an additional 61,800 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in S&T Bancorp by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,624,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,922,000 after acquiring an additional 20,411 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in S&T Bancorp by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 958,685 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,729,000 after purchasing an additional 3,388 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in S&T Bancorp by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 698,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,418,000 after purchasing an additional 3,613 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its position in S&T Bancorp by 33.5% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 459,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,260,000 after purchasing an additional 115,333 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.22% of the company’s stock.

S&T Bancorp Company Profile

S&T Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania, serving as the parent of S&T Bank. Established as a banking organization in 1902 with the holding company formation following in the early 1980s, S&T Bancorp has built its reputation on delivering community-oriented financial services. The company operates under the NASDAQ ticker STBA, maintaining a focus on personalized banking solutions and local decision-making.

The company’s main business activities encompass a full suite of retail and commercial banking products.