BlackRock Inc. Buys Shares of 1,597,272 Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation $PGC

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 1,597,272 shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial in the second quarter, worth approximately $75.6 million and representing a 9.01% stake. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 72.75% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $56.33, although some firms recently downgraded the stock to “Hold.”
• Peapack-Gladstone reported quarterly EPS of $0.85, slightly below the $0.88 consensus estimate, while revenue of $86.05 million exceeded expectations. Executives sold 8,100 shares worth $377,170 over the past 90 days.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:PGC - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,597,272 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $75,599,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 9.01% of Peapack-Gladstone Financial at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of PGC. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Peapack-Gladstone Financial by 67.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,138,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,429,000 after acquiring an additional 456,828 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial by 255.0% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 108,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,030,000 after purchasing an additional 78,135 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial by 100.8% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 143,306 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,991,000 after purchasing an additional 71,932 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Peapack-Gladstone Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,965,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Peapack-Gladstone Financial by 525.8% during the 4th quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 71,628 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,995,000 after buying an additional 60,183 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.75% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "moderate buy" rating and issued a $56.00 target price (up from $55.00) on shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Zacks Research cut Peapack-Gladstone Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, July 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial in a report on Friday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $56.33.

Insider Activity at Peapack-Gladstone Financial

In other news, EVP Lisa Chalkan sold 1,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total value of $52,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 26,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,241,170. The trade was a 4.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John P. Babcock sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.11, for a total transaction of $235,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,147,368.02. This trade represents a 9.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 8,100 shares of company stock valued at $377,170. 5.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PGC opened at $45.11 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $46.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.37. Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $24.71 and a twelve month high of $49.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $799.80 million, a PE ratio of 15.66 and a beta of 0.71.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial (NASDAQ:PGC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.03). Peapack-Gladstone Financial had a return on equity of 7.82% and a net margin of 11.09%.The company had revenue of $86.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $85.17 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation will post 3.58 EPS for the current year.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Peapack-Gladstone Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 6.94%.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Profile

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation is the parent company of Peapack-Gladstone Bank, a New Jersey-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Bedminster, New Jersey, that trades on the NASDAQ under the symbol PGC. Through Peapack-Gladstone Bank, the company offers a broad range of deposit and lending solutions, including checking and savings accounts, residential and commercial real estate loans, lines of credit and treasury management services. Clients benefit from both in-branch relationship banking and an expanding suite of digital banking tools designed to support personal and business financial needs.

Complementing its core banking operations, Peapack-Gladstone Financial provides wealth management, trust and financial planning services through its subsidiary, Peapack-Gladstone Wealth Management.

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