Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Makes New $348,000 Investment in Meridian Bank $MRBK

Key Points

• Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC invested $348,000 to purchase 24,199 shares of Meridian Bank, representing 0.21% ownership.
• Analysts have increased the price target for Meridian Bank from $17.00 to $19.00, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Meridian Bank recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.2%.

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 24,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $348,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Meridian Bank as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meridian Bank during the fourth quarter worth $186,000. Citadel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Meridian Bank by 29.0% in the 4th quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 18,347 shares of the company's stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 4,129 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Meridian Bank by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 18,452 shares of the company's stock worth $253,000 after buying an additional 2,609 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in Meridian Bank in the 1st quarter worth $276,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. acquired a new position in Meridian Bank in the 1st quarter worth $310,000. 58.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meridian Bank Stock Up 1.2%

MRBK traded up $0.18 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $15.68. The company had a trading volume of 89,658 shares, compared to its average volume of 71,021. The company has a market cap of $177.18 million, a PE ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50-day moving average of $14.97 and a 200-day moving average of $14.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Meridian Bank has a 1-year low of $11.16 and a 1-year high of $17.33.

Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $32.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.65 million. Meridian Bank had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 10.62%. As a group, analysts forecast that Meridian Bank will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Meridian Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Meridian Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, DA Davidson boosted their price target on Meridian Bank from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meridian Bank presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.50.

Meridian Bank Profile

Meridian Corporation operates as the holding company for Meridian Bank that provides commercial banking products and services in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Florida, and Maryland. The company offers various deposit products, such as demand non-interest bearing, demand interest bearing, savings accounts, money market accounts, and time deposits.