Zacks Research Upgrades Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) to "Strong-Buy"

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Peoples Bancorp to “strong-buy” from “hold.” The stock carries a consensus “moderate buy” rating, with analysts’ average price target at $41.50.
• Peoples Bancorp reported quarterly earnings of $0.96 per share, exceeding estimates of $0.85, while revenue of $121.95 million also topped expectations.
• Shares opened at $37.48 and were trading up 1.6%; institutional investors own approximately 60.68% of the company, while insiders own 3.31%.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on PEBO. Piper Sandler set a $46.00 price target on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.50.

Peoples Bancorp Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of PEBO opened at $37.48 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $39.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.62. Peoples Bancorp has a 12-month low of $27.49 and a 12-month high of $42.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $121.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $120.05 million. Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.71% and a net margin of 19.17%. As a group, research analysts predict that Peoples Bancorp will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Matthew Edgell sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.27, for a total value of $123,810.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 20,183 shares of the company's stock, valued at $832,952.41. This represents a 12.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dwight Smith purchased 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.81 per share, for a total transaction of $39,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,256 shares in the company, valued at $408,291.36. This trade represents a 10.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp during the second quarter worth $128,113,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Peoples Bancorp by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,270,134 shares of the bank's stock worth $74,619,000 after buying an additional 21,273 shares during the period. Peoples Bank OH raised its stake in Peoples Bancorp by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Peoples Bank OH now owns 443,618 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,582,000 after buying an additional 7,043 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $10,181,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its holdings in Peoples Bancorp by 28.5% during the first quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 259,843 shares of the bank's stock worth $8,541,000 after acquiring an additional 57,650 shares in the last quarter. 60.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Peoples Bancorp Company Profile

Peoples Bancorp Inc is a financial holding company headquartered in Marietta, Ohio. Through its principal subsidiary, Peoples Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations and government entities.

Peoples Bank offers consumer and commercial deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate loans, consumer lending, mortgage services, treasury management and other business financing solutions. The company also provides wealth management, trust, investment and insurance services through affiliated or related operations.

Founded in 1902, Peoples Bancorp serves communities primarily in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia through a network of banking offices and digital banking channels.

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