Cerity Partners LLC Sells 9,228 Shares of Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN)

Cerity Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Free Report) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 100,379 shares of the bank's stock after selling 9,228 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC owned about 0.13% of Towne Bank worth $3,432,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Towne Bank by 32.6% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,850 shares of the bank's stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Towne Bank during the first quarter worth $27,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Towne Bank by 12.1% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 38,930 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,331,000 after buying an additional 4,206 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Towne Bank in the first quarter valued at $590,000. Finally, Lightrock Netherlands B.V. boosted its position in shares of Towne Bank by 43.5% during the 1st quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 282,752 shares of the bank's stock worth $9,683,000 after acquiring an additional 85,656 shares in the last quarter. 55.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Towne Bank Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Towne Bank stock traded down $0.31 on Friday, hitting $35.93. The stock had a trading volume of 260,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 254,334. Towne Bank has a one year low of $29.43 and a one year high of $38.28. The stock has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.22 and a beta of 0.80. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $34.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.34.

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.07. Towne Bank had a return on equity of 8.27% and a net margin of 17.15%. The business had revenue of $190.04 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.29 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.48 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Towne Bank will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Towne Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 27th. This is a positive change from Towne Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Towne Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Towne Bank from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Hovde Group raised their price target on Towne Bank from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th.

About Towne Bank

TowneBank provides retail and commercial banking services for individuals, commercial enterprises, and professionals. The company operates through three segments: Banking, Realty, and Insurance. It accepts various deposits, including demand deposits, savings accounts, money rate savings, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.