Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning.

Oak Valley Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of OVLY stock opened at $24.71 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $24.98 and a 200-day moving average of $25.87. Oak Valley Bancorp has a 52-week low of $22.49 and a 52-week high of $30.70. The stock has a market cap of $204.85 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.61 and a beta of 0.37.

Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Oak Valley Bancorp had a net margin of 39.97% and a return on equity of 21.84%. The firm had revenue of $19.67 million during the quarter.

Oak Valley Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 29th were given a $0.225 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.51%. This is a boost from Oak Valley Bancorp’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 26th. Oak Valley Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 12.03%.

Insider Activity at Oak Valley Bancorp

In other news, Director Daniel J. Leonard acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $26.99 per share, with a total value of $26,990.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 58,223 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,571,438.77. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders bought 2,875 shares of company stock valued at $73,368 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 19.61% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oak Valley Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Oak Valley Bancorp by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 370,058 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,083,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Oak Valley Bancorp by 216.1% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 7,946 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Oak Valley Bancorp by 337.8% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,947 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 3,817 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Oak Valley Bancorp by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 56,792 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,701,000 after purchasing an additional 2,564 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Oak Valley Bancorp by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 22,523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 4,748 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 30.86% of the company’s stock.

Oak Valley Bancorp Company Profile

Oak Valley Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Oak Valley Community Bank that provides a range of commercial banking services to individuals and small to medium-sized businesses in the Central Valley and the Eastern Sierras. The company's deposits products include checking and savings, money market, health savings, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.