Community Financial System (NYSE:CBU) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Community Financial System, Inc. (NYSE:CBU) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $69.26 and last traded at $69.17, with a volume of 137053 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $67.88.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Community Financial System in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Community Financial System from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Community Financial System from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Community Financial System from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Community Financial System presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.75.

Community Financial System Trading Up 1.3%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $64.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.68 and a beta of 0.77.

Community Financial System (NYSE:CBU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The bank reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $213.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $216.36 million. Community Financial System had a return on equity of 11.24% and a net margin of 21.26%.Community Financial System’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Community Financial System, Inc. will post 4.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Community Financial System Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Community Financial System’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Eric Stickels sold 2,000 shares of Community Financial System stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.98, for a total value of $127,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 31,592 shares in the company, valued at $2,021,256.16. The trade was a 5.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark J. Bolus sold 12,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total transaction of $816,797.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 94,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,302,020. The trade was a 11.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Community Financial System

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Community Financial System during the fourth quarter worth about $38,993,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Community Financial System by 132.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 636,257 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,310,000 after purchasing an additional 363,012 shares during the last quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Community Financial System by 740.1% in the 4th quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 401,450 shares of the bank’s stock worth $23,059,000 after purchasing an additional 353,663 shares in the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Community Financial System in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $15,185,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Community Financial System by 10,989.2% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 200,049 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,491,000 after purchasing an additional 198,245 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.79% of the company’s stock.

Community Financial System Company Profile

Community Financial System (NYSE: CBU) is the bank holding company for Community Bank, National Association, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in DeWitt, New York. Through its principal subsidiary, the company offers a range of banking and financial services designed to meet the needs of both consumer and business clients. Its organizational structure centers on community-based banking operations supported by centralized technology, risk management and administrative functions.

The company’s product offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial mortgage loans, commercial and consumer lending, treasury and cash management services, and electronic banking.