Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $7.51 Million Stock Holdings in Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. $MCB

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. by 18.9%, now holding 134,211 shares worth approximately $7.5 million.
• Metropolitan Bank recently reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.76, exceeding analyst expectations of $1.62, alongside a revenue of $76.27 million.
• The company announced a $50 million share buyback program reflecting the board's confidence in the stock's valuation, as well as a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB - Free Report) by 18.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 134,211 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 21,376 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 1.26% of Metropolitan Bank worth $7,514,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 289.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 596 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank in the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,109,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank in the 1st quarter worth approximately $986,000. Sippican Capital Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 31.8% in the 1st quarter. Sippican Capital Advisors now owns 24,121 shares of the company's stock worth $1,351,000 after purchasing an additional 5,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank in the 1st quarter worth approximately $352,000. Institutional investors own 79.83% of the company's stock.

Metropolitan Bank Stock Performance

Metropolitan Bank stock traded up $4.3090 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $76.9990. 70,460 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 66,265. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $71.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $802.33 million, a PE ratio of 12.48 and a beta of 1.13. Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. has a one year low of $47.08 and a one year high of $80.20.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $76.27 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.50 million. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 13.68%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.50 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. will post 7.31 EPS for the current year.

Metropolitan Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 28th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 28th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Metropolitan Bank's payout ratio is presently 9.72%.

Metropolitan Bank declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, July 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Metropolitan Bank from $81.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Hovde Group raised their price target on Metropolitan Bank from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $82.67.

Insider Activity at Metropolitan Bank

In related news, CEO Mark R. Defazio sold 23,114 shares of Metropolitan Bank stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.43, for a total value of $1,512,349.02. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 94,185 shares in the company, valued at $6,162,524.55. The trade was a 19.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Scott Lublin sold 5,000 shares of Metropolitan Bank stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.64, for a total value of $393,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,179 shares in the company, valued at $3,631,516.56. The trade was a 9.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 73,077 shares of company stock worth $5,011,105 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 6.09% of the company's stock.

Metropolitan Bank Company Profile

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Metropolitan Commercial Bank that provides a range of business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, public entities, and individuals in the New York metropolitan area.