AQR Capital Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC)

AQR Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,775 shares of the bank's stock after selling 9,087 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.62% of Preferred Bank worth $7,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 24.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 186,107 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,935,000 after acquiring an additional 35,979 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its position in Preferred Bank by 46.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 914 shares of the bank's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 26,222 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,265,000 after buying an additional 3,516 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Preferred Bank by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 7,848 shares of the bank's stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 1,588 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 59.6% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,845 shares of the bank's stock worth $505,000 after buying an additional 2,183 shares during the last quarter. 72.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Preferred Bank Price Performance

PFBC stock traded up $2.38 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $85.37. 6,681 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 85,175. The company has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87 and a beta of 0.69. Preferred Bank has a 12-month low of $71.43 and a 12-month high of $99.78. The stock's 50 day moving average is $81.51 and its 200 day moving average is $86.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The bank reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.33 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $65.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $70.78 million. Preferred Bank had a net margin of 25.00% and a return on equity of 17.80%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.44 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Preferred Bank will post 9.81 EPS for the current year.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 7th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 7th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Preferred Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson reduced their price target on Preferred Bank from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Preferred Bank from $108.00 to $96.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $91.00 price target on shares of Preferred Bank in a report on Tuesday, April 29th.

Preferred Bank Company Profile

Preferred Bank provides various commercial banking products and services to small and mid-sized businesses and their owners, entrepreneurs, real estate developers and investors, professionals, and high net worth individuals. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts; fixed-rate and fixed maturity retail, and non-retail certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts.