Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $37.90 and last traded at $37.7530, with a volume of 745770 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $36.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on TOWN shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Towne Bank from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $38.00 target price (down from $42.00) on shares of Towne Bank in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Hovde Group lowered their target price on Towne Bank from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Towne Bank from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $39.50.

Towne Bank Trading Up 3.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The business’s 50-day moving average is $35.27 and its 200 day moving average is $35.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.61 and a beta of 0.69.

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01). Towne Bank had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 9.99%. The business had revenue of $245.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $245.33 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Towne Bank will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Towne Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 26th. This is a positive change from Towne Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Towne Bank’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.46%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Towne Bank by 931.5% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 753 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Towne Bank in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Towne Bank in the second quarter worth $30,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Towne Bank in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, CrossGen Wealth LLC bought a new position in Towne Bank during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Institutional investors own 55.99% of the company’s stock.

About Towne Bank

TowneBank is a Virginia?based financial services company organized as a bank holding company. Its primary subsidiary, TowneBank, operates a network of community banking offices and mortgage production facilities. The company offers a comprehensive range of commercial and consumer banking solutions, including deposit accounts, lending products, treasury management, and private banking services tailored to individuals, small businesses, and middle?market corporations.

In addition to traditional banking, TowneBank provides specialty services through affiliated subsidiaries.