Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Posts Earnings Results

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) announced its earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.70, Zacks reports. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 13.49%.The firm had revenue of $88.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $83.15 million.

Metropolitan Bank Price Performance

Shares of MCB opened at $90.61 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $933.32 million, a PE ratio of 13.63 and a beta of 1.13. Metropolitan Bank has a 1-year low of $47.08 and a 1-year high of $91.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.26.

Metropolitan Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 27th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This is a boost from Metropolitan Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 27th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Metropolitan Bank’s payout ratio is presently 9.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Daniel F. Dougherty bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $71.66 per share, with a total value of $71,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 27,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,959,256.06. This trade represents a 3.80% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nick Rosenberg sold 625 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.41, for a total value of $50,256.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 27,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,178,226.49. This represents a 2.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 1,167 shares of company stock valued at $83,010. 6.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCB. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 404,059 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,232,000 after acquiring an additional 24,115 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Metropolitan Bank by 7.9% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 149,938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,218,000 after purchasing an additional 11,009 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 1.2% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 113,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in Metropolitan Bank by 0.3% in the third quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 69,851 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,226,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 418.5% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 47,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,551,000 after buying an additional 38,302 shares during the period. 79.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MCB. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Metropolitan Bank in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.00.

About Metropolitan Bank

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB), through its principal subsidiary Metropolitan Commercial Bank, operates as a New York–based regional financial institution providing a range of commercial and consumer banking services. The company offers deposit products including checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as business and personal certificates of deposit. On the lending side, Metropolitan Bank extends commercial real estate financing, equipment loans, working capital lines of credit and consumer installment loans tailored to the needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises and individual customers.

In addition to traditional deposit and lending services, Metropolitan Bank provides specialized treasury and cash-management solutions, foreign exchange services and letters of credit for both domestic businesses and multinational clients.