Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.40.

BMRC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp in a research note on Monday. DA Davidson upped their target price on Bank of Marin Bancorp from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. UBS Group set a $30.00 target price on Bank of Marin Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (up from $27.00) on shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th.

Bank of Marin Bancorp Stock Up 3.7%

NASDAQ:BMRC traded up $0.95 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $26.37. The stock had a trading volume of 81,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 82,702. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $24.77 and a 200 day moving average of $23.66. The company has a market capitalization of $424.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.53 and a beta of 0.92. Bank of Marin Bancorp has a one year low of $19.14 and a one year high of $27.11.

Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 7th. The bank reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter. Bank of Marin Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.27% and a net margin of 6.22%.The business had revenue of $31.32 million during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bank of Marin Bancorp will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of Marin Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 6th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 6th. Bank of Marin Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 161.29%.

Bank of Marin Bancorp declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, July 28th that permits the company to repurchase $25.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank of Marin Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BMRC. HoldCo Asset Management LP grew its holdings in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 23.8% in the third quarter. HoldCo Asset Management LP now owns 504,411 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,247,000 after purchasing an additional 97,000 shares during the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Bank of Marin Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $282,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 378,065 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,179,000 after acquiring an additional 8,022 shares during the period. Creative Planning raised its stake in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 60,133 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,460,000 after acquiring an additional 6,770 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 85.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 273,266 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,635,000 after acquiring an additional 125,816 shares during the period. 52.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank of Marin Bancorp Company Profile

Bank of Marin Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Marin that provides a range of financial services primarily to small to medium-sized businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and commercial real estate investors in the United States. The company offers personal and business checking and savings accounts; and individual retirement, health savings, and demand deposit marketplace accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit, certificate of deposit account registry, and insured cash sweep services.