Entropy Technologies LP Invests $309,000 in NBT Bancorp Inc. $NBTB

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP has acquired a new stake in NBT Bancorp Inc., purchasing 7,200 shares valued at approximately $309,000, highlighting increasing institutional interest in the bank.
• Recent upgrades from analysts include a price target increase from $53.00 to $55.00 by DA Davidson, reflecting a positive sentiment and an average rating of "Hold" for the stock.
• NBT Bancorp has announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.34 to $0.37 per share, indicating strong financial performance with a dividend yield of 3.5% and a payout ratio of 49.10%.

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of NBT Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:NBTB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 7,200 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $309,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new position in shares of NBT Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $52,606,000. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of NBT Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $38,978,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of NBT Bancorp by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 726,413 shares of the bank's stock worth $34,693,000 after buying an additional 33,855 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of NBT Bancorp by 4.7% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 697,879 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,939,000 after buying an additional 31,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of NBT Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $23,651,000. 58.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director David J. Nasca sold 19,603 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.42, for a total transaction of $851,162.26. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 82,910 shares in the company, valued at $3,599,952.20. This represents a 19.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director John H. Watt, Jr. sold 7,869 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.02, for a total value of $330,655.38. Following the sale, the director owned 116,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,875,454.54. This trade represents a 6.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

NBT Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ NBTB traded up $0.0850 on Tuesday, reaching $42.4150. The stock had a trading volume of 27,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 242,211. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. NBT Bancorp Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.31 and a 12-month high of $52.44. The business's 50-day moving average price is $42.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.96. The stock has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.31 and a beta of 0.59.

NBT Bancorp (NASDAQ:NBTB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.06. NBT Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.81% and a net margin of 16.10%.The company had revenue of $171.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $171.04 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that NBT Bancorp Inc. will post 3.69 earnings per share for the current year.

NBT Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This is an increase from NBT Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. NBT Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NBTB shares. Piper Sandler upgraded NBT Bancorp to a "neutral" rating and set a $47.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on NBT Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded NBT Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.00.

NBT Bancorp Profile

NBT Bancorp Inc, a financial holding company, provides commercial banking, retail banking, and wealth management services. Its deposit products include demand deposit, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal, money market deposit, and certificate of deposit accounts. The company's loan portfolio comprises indirect and direct consumer, home equity, mortgages, business banking loans, and commercial loans; commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, agricultural, and commercial construction loans; and residential real estate loans.