Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Invests $2.93 Million in Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC)

Key Points

• Essex Investment Management Co. LLC has acquired 132,943 shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp, valued at approximately $2.93 million, representing about 0.82% ownership of the bank.
• A stock repurchase plan of $25 million was authorized by Bank of Marin Bancorp's board, allowing the company to buy back up to 6.5% of its shares, indicating leadership believes the stock is undervalued.
• Bank of Marin Bancorp recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, with a dividend yield of 4.23%, despite a payout ratio of -250.00%.

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 132,943 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $2,934,000. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC owned 0.82% of Bank of Marin Bancorp at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. bought a new stake in Bank of Marin Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,680,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 92.7% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 96,757 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,300,000 after purchasing an additional 46,536 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 6,382.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 13,419 shares of the bank's stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 13,212 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in Bank of Marin Bancorp by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 655,514 shares of the bank's stock valued at $15,582,000 after purchasing an additional 38,934 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BMRC. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Bank of Marin Bancorp from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of Bank of Marin Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Bank of Marin Bancorp from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Bank of Marin Bancorp from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $26.25.

Bank of Marin Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of BMRC stock traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $22.38. The stock had a trading volume of 68,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 86,872. Bank of Marin Bancorp has a 12-month low of $16.97 and a 12-month high of $27.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $363.00 million, a P/E ratio of 52.08 and a beta of 0.86. The firm's 50-day moving average is $23.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.78.

Bank of Marin Bancorp (NASDAQ:BMRC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.07). Bank of Marin Bancorp had a return on equity of 4.60% and a net margin of 4.43%. The firm had revenue of $10.29 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $29.07 million. Analysts expect that Bank of Marin Bancorp will post 1.61 EPS for the current year.

Bank of Marin Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. Bank of Marin Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 232.56%.

Bank of Marin Bancorp declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, July 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $25.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to repurchase up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Bank of Marin Bancorp Profile

Bank of Marin Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Marin that provides a range of financial services primarily to small to medium-sized businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and commercial real estate investors in the United States. The company offers personal and business checking and savings accounts; and individual retirement, health savings, and demand deposit marketplace accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit, certificate of deposit account registry, and insured cash sweep services.