Bridgeway Capital Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN)

Bridgeway Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 49,638 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 898 shares during the quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC owned 0.62% of Middlefield Banc worth $1,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 1,250.6% during the 4th quarter. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. now owns 19,462 shares of the bank’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 18,021 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Middlefield Banc by 112.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 25,831 shares of the bank’s stock worth $725,000 after buying an additional 13,651 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Middlefield Banc by 69.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,916 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $487,000 after buying an additional 6,918 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 38,290 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,074,000 after acquiring an additional 3,508 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Middlefield Banc by 29.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 10,174 shares of the bank’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

Middlefield Banc Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MBCN opened at $29.28 on Friday. Middlefield Banc Corp. has a one year low of $20.61 and a one year high of $34.00. The stock has a market cap of $236.61 million, a PE ratio of 15.25 and a beta of 0.40. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $26.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $18.04 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.23 million. Middlefield Banc had a return on equity of 7.47% and a net margin of 14.31%. On average, analysts forecast that Middlefield Banc Corp. will post 1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlefield Banc Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This is an increase from Middlefield Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Middlefield Banc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Middlefield Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Hovde Group lowered their price objective on shares of Middlefield Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Middlefield Banc Profile

Middlefield Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, small business owners, and retail customers in northeastern and central Ohio. It offers checking, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, time certificates of deposit, commercial loans, real estate loans, various consumer loans, safe deposit facilities, and travelers' checks.