Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 32,662 Shares of Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. $MCB

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors increased its Metropolitan Bank stake by 7.6%, adding 32,662 shares to own 459,791 shares, or 3.7% of the company. Institutional investors collectively hold 79.83% of MCB.
• Metropolitan Bank reported quarterly EPS of $1.54, missing the $2.30 consensus estimate, while revenue of $93.01 million was slightly below expectations. Insiders sold 19,897 shares worth about $1.87 million over the past three months.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend to $0.35 per share, implying a 1.5% yield. Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with an average “Buy” rating and a $105 consensus price target, although some firms recently lowered their targets.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB - Free Report) by 7.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 459,791 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 32,662 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 3.70% of Metropolitan Bank worth $38,295,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MCB. Lido Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank in the fourth quarter valued at $2,632,000. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new position in Metropolitan Bank during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,185,000. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 363.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 64,832 shares of the company's stock worth $4,951,000 after acquiring an additional 50,844 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Metropolitan Bank during the 2nd quarter worth about $208,000. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in Metropolitan Bank by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 69,669 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,877,000 after acquiring an additional 4,101 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.83% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Metropolitan Bank news, EVP Nick Rosenberg sold 1,807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.42, for a total value of $181,458.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 22,202 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,229,524.84. This represents a 7.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Harvey Gutman sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.58, for a total value of $268,740.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,243 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,634,207.94. This trade represents a 14.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 19,897 shares of company stock valued at $1,874,352 in the last three months. 5.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Metropolitan Bank Trading Up 0.1%

MCB opened at $92.61 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $90.03. Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $64.66 and a fifty-two week high of $102.04. The company has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.76). The business had revenue of $93.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.39 million. Metropolitan Bank had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 10.72%.

Metropolitan Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 11th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is a boost from Metropolitan Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Metropolitan Bank's payout ratio is presently 17.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Metropolitan Bank from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Metropolitan Bank from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Metropolitan Bank presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $105.00.

Metropolitan Bank Company Profile

Metropolitan Bank NYSE: MCB, through its principal subsidiary Metropolitan Commercial Bank, operates as a New York–based regional financial institution providing a range of commercial and consumer banking services. The company offers deposit products including checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as business and personal certificates of deposit. On the lending side, Metropolitan Bank extends commercial real estate financing, equipment loans, working capital lines of credit and consumer installment loans tailored to the needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises and individual customers.

In addition to traditional deposit and lending services, Metropolitan Bank provides specialized treasury and cash-management solutions, foreign exchange services and letters of credit for both domestic businesses and multinational clients.

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