Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Cuts Position in Towne Bank $TOWN

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reduced its stake in Towne Bank by 44.2%, now owning approximately $8.13 million worth of shares after selling nearly 189,000 shares in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in Towne Bank, with T. Rowe Price expanding its stake by 1.1% and Victory Capital Management by 19.9% during the same period.
• Towne Bank declared a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, set to be paid on October 10th, reflecting a 3.0% dividend yield based on an annualized payout of $1.08.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lowered its stake in Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Free Report) by 44.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 237,866 shares of the bank's stock after selling 188,795 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.32% of Towne Bank worth $8,133,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Towne Bank by 32.6% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,850 shares of the bank's stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Towne Bank by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 19,656 shares of the bank's stock worth $672,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Towne Bank by 137.0% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 5,121 shares of the bank's stock worth $175,000 after buying an additional 2,960 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Towne Bank by 2,332.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,624 shares of the bank's stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 3,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Towne Bank by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 14,383 shares of the bank's stock worth $492,000 after buying an additional 1,861 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.99% of the company's stock.

Towne Bank Stock Performance

TOWN stock traded down $0.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $35.92. The stock had a trading volume of 168,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 270,148. The stock's 50 day moving average is $35.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.52. 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 52 week low of $29.43 and a 52 week high of $38.28. The firm has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of 15.62 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Towne Bank Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Towne Bank Profile

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.