Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $100.50.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PFBC. Zacks Research lowered Preferred Bank from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 26th. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Preferred Bank in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Brean Capital lowered Preferred Bank from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Stephens reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Preferred Bank in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Preferred Bank in a research note on Monday, December 29th.

Preferred Bank Price Performance

Preferred Bank stock opened at $94.04 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Preferred Bank has a 52-week low of $78.30 and a 52-week high of $103.05. The firm has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of 9.06 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $90.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.26.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $2.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.01. Preferred Bank had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The business had revenue of $78.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.54 million. On average, research analysts expect that Preferred Bank will post 10.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Preferred Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 7th were issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 7th. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Preferred Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.83%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 494,827 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,727,000 after purchasing an additional 16,348 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC lifted its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 356,065 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,623,000 after purchasing an additional 18,309 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 337,804 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,534,000 after purchasing an additional 45,946 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 206,622 shares of the bank’s stock worth $19,511,000 after purchasing an additional 33,124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 199,419 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,831,000 after purchasing an additional 33,157 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.77% of the company’s stock.

Preferred Bank Company Profile

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ: PFBC) is a California-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Los Angeles. The institution offers a full range of banking products and services to businesses and individuals, with a particular emphasis on commercial real estate lending, business banking, treasury management and deposit accounts. Preferred Bank operates through branch offices across Southern California and national loan production offices in major U.S. markets.

The bank’s core lending portfolio focuses on commercial real estate acquisition, development and investment properties.