Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. Sells 114,752 Shares of NBT Bancorp Inc. $NBTB

Key Points

• Deprince Race & Zollo cut its NBT Bancorp stake by 18.8%, selling 114,752 shares and leaving 496,089 shares (about 0.95% of the company) valued at roughly $20.6 million.
• Insider activity was mixed: EVP Amy Wiles sold 4,435 shares, while Director Timothy E. Delaney purchased 22,730 shares, boosting his holding to 74,615 shares (a 43.8% increase).
• Analysts are broadly constructive — MarketBeat shows an average rating of Moderate Buy with a $52 target; NBTB recently beat EPS estimates ($1.05 vs. $0.99), pays a $1.48 annual dividend (3.3% yield) and trades at a P/E of about 13.8.

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of NBT Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:NBTB - Free Report) by 18.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 496,089 shares of the bank's stock after selling 114,752 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. owned about 0.95% of NBT Bancorp worth $20,598,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of NBT Bancorp by 195.7% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 71,852 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,983,000 after acquiring an additional 47,550 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in NBT Bancorp by 168.4% during the third quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 71,060 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,967,000 after buying an additional 44,585 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new stake in NBT Bancorp during the third quarter valued at about $4,886,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in NBT Bancorp by 26.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 334,913 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,986,000 after buying an additional 70,594 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Planning Hawaii Inc. purchased a new stake in NBT Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $641,000. 58.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Amy Wiles sold 4,435 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.72, for a total value of $202,768.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 21,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $982,980. This trade represents a 17.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Timothy E. Delaney purchased 22,730 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $42.97 per share, with a total value of $976,708.10. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 74,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,206,206.55. This trade represents a 43.81% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 3.03% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on NBTB shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of NBT Bancorp in a research report on Monday, March 16th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of NBT Bancorp from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of NBT Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of NBT Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Brean Capital cut shares of NBT Bancorp from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.00.

NBT Bancorp Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NBT Bancorp stock opened at $45.40 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. NBT Bancorp Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.15 and a 52-week high of $46.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76 and a beta of 0.47. The company's 50 day moving average price is $43.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.58.

NBT Bancorp (NASDAQ:NBTB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The bank reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.06. NBT Bancorp had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 10.86%. The firm had revenue of $185.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $183.63 million. Equities research analysts forecast that NBT Bancorp Inc. will post 3.69 EPS for the current year.

NBT Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. NBT Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.85%.

NBT Bancorp Profile

NBT Bancorp, Inc NASDAQ: NBTB is the bank holding company for NBT Bank, N.A., a full-service commercial bank that serves both individual and corporate clients across the Northeastern United States. Through its branch network and digital channels, the company offers a comprehensive range of commercial banking services, including business lending, treasury management, cash management and specialized industry financing. Its consumer banking platform provides checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, home mortgages, home equity lines of credit and other lending solutions tailored to meet personal and household financial needs.

In addition to traditional banking, NBT Bancorp delivers wealth management and fiduciary services through its trust division, offering investment advisory, trust administration, retirement planning and estate settlement.

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