Dark Forest Capital Management LP Raises Stock Holdings in Towne Bank $TOWN

Key Points

• Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its stake in Towne Bank by 488.9%, owning 113,262 shares valued at approximately $3.87 million.
• Towne Bank reported an EPS of $0.81 for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.69, and achieved revenues of $207.44 million, a 18.6% year-over-year increase.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, resulting in an annual yield of 3.0%, with an ex-dividend date on September 29.

Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Free Report) by 488.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 113,262 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 94,030 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP owned 0.15% of Towne Bank worth $3,872,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Towne Bank by 32.6% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,850 shares of the bank's stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Towne Bank by 4.4% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 19,656 shares of the bank's stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Towne Bank by 137.0% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,121 shares of the bank's stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 2,960 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Towne Bank by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 688,871 shares of the bank's stock valued at $23,463,000 after acquiring an additional 34,591 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Towne Bank by 2,332.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,624 shares of the bank's stock valued at $124,000 after acquiring an additional 3,475 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.99% of the company's stock.

Towne Bank Stock Down 0.6%

NASDAQ:TOWN traded down $0.21 on Friday, reaching $36.36. 968,384 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 348,951. The company has a market capitalization of $2.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.81 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Towne Bank has a 12 month low of $29.43 and a 12 month high of $38.28. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $35.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.54.

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $207.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $202.18 million. Towne Bank had a net margin of 16.49% and a return on equity of 8.99%. Towne Bank's revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Towne Bank will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Towne Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 29th. Towne Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Towne Bank from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 3rd. Hovde Group boosted their target price on shares of Towne Bank from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Towne Bank has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $40.67.

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.