Insider Buying: Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) Director Acquires $39,810.00 in Stock

Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) Director Dwight Eric Smith bought 1,000 shares of Peoples Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.81 per share, with a total value of $39,810.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 10,256 shares in the company, valued at approximately $408,291.36. The trade was a 10.80% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:PEBO opened at $41.56 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.58. The firm has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 12.56 and a beta of 0.62. Peoples Bancorp Inc. has a 12-month low of $27.49 and a 12-month high of $42.29.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $121.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $120.05 million. Peoples Bancorp had a net margin of 19.17% and a return on equity of 10.79%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Peoples Bancorp Inc. will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peoples Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 3rd. Peoples Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 50.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on PEBO. Piper Sandler set a $46.00 price target on Peoples Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Peoples Bancorp from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Hovde Group lifted their target price on Peoples Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on Peoples Bancorp from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Peoples Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Peoples Bancorp in the first quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Peoples Bancorp by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,688 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 654.3% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,100 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 2,689 shares during the last quarter. 60.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Peoples Bancorp

Peoples Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Marietta, Ohio. Through its subsidiary Peoples Bank, the company provides a comprehensive range of commercial and consumer banking services designed to serve individuals, businesses and institutional clients. Its deposit products include checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit and digital banking platforms that enable secure online and mobile access.

On the lending side, Peoples Bancorp offers commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate financing, construction and agricultural lending, as well as residential mortgage products.