Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Shore Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:SHBI)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday. The stock had previously closed at $23.38, but opened at $21.61. Shore Bancshares shares last traded at $22.7810, with a volume of 37,683 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Shore Bancshares from $24.00 to $26.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. DA Davidson began coverage on Shore Bancshares in a research report on Monday, September 28th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Shore Bancshares from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Shore Bancshares in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Shore Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.75.

Shore Bancshares Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $766.88 million, a PE ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.04.

Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.54. Shore Bancshares had a net margin of 19.15% and a return on equity of 12.11%. The company had revenue of $62.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.31 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Shore Bancshares Inc will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Shore Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 2nd were given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 2nd. Shore Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 28.28%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Shore Bancshares during the second quarter worth approximately $73,784,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Shore Bancshares in the second quarter worth $20,311,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Shore Bancshares in the second quarter worth $17,110,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Shore Bancshares by 578.2% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 380,283 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,104,000 after acquiring an additional 324,208 shares during the period. Finally, Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in Shore Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,867,000. 59.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Shore Bancshares Company Profile

Shore Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Easton, Maryland. Through its principal banking subsidiary, Shore United Bank, the company provides a range of financial services to individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations and local governments.

Shore United Bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgages, home equity financing, cash management and other business banking services. Its offerings also include wealth management, trust and investment services, helping customers manage borrowing, saving, investing and other financial needs.

The company serves communities primarily across Maryland and Delaware, with a network concentrated in the Eastern Shore and expanding into other Maryland markets.