BNP Paribas Financial Markets Trims Stake in OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets trimmed its holdings in OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC - Free Report) by 43.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,795 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 29,589 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.06% of OceanFirst Financial worth $684,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in OCFC. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 700,247 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $12,674,000 after buying an additional 24,634 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in OceanFirst Financial by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 553,363 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $10,016,000 after buying an additional 27,971 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its stake in OceanFirst Financial by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 106,912 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $1,935,000 after buying an additional 38,987 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of OceanFirst Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 155.7% during the fourth quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 14,319 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 8,719 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

OceanFirst Financial Stock Down 0.7%

OCFC traded down $0.13 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $16.69. The stock had a trading volume of 15,654 shares, compared to its average volume of 305,944. The stock's 50 day moving average is $16.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $974.14 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.12 and a beta of 0.99. OceanFirst Financial Corp. has a one year low of $14.03 and a one year high of $21.87.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.35. The business had revenue of $97.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $95.66 million. OceanFirst Financial had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 14.45%. As a group, analysts expect that OceanFirst Financial Corp. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

OceanFirst Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.79%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. OceanFirst Financial's payout ratio is 52.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on OCFC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on OceanFirst Financial from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Raymond James reduced their target price on OceanFirst Financial from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, OceanFirst Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $20.67.

OceanFirst Financial Company Profile

OceanFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. that provides community banking services to retail and commercial customers. It accepts money market accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, non-interest-bearing accounts, and time deposits, that includes brokered deposits to retail, government, and business customers.