New York State Common Retirement Fund Cuts Holdings in Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:PB)

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its position in shares of Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:PB - Free Report) by 16.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 252,397 shares of the bank's stock after selling 50,460 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.26% of Prosperity Bancshares worth $18,014,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Prosperity Bancshares by 368.5% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 520 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its position in Prosperity Bancshares by 349.5% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 917 shares of the bank's stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 713 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Prosperity Bancshares in the fourth quarter worth $88,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Prosperity Bancshares by 44.9% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,277 shares of the bank's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Prosperity Bancshares in the first quarter worth $105,000. 80.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prosperity Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of Prosperity Bancshares stock traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $73.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 534,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 602,832. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $71.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.27. Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. has a one year low of $61.57 and a one year high of $86.76. The stock has a market cap of $7.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.68.

Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $306.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $307.17 million. Prosperity Bancshares had a net margin of 27.69% and a return on equity of 6.81%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Prosperity Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prosperity Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Prosperity Bancshares's payout ratio is presently 44.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prosperity Bancshares

In related news, Director Ned S. Holmes sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.98, for a total transaction of $35,990.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 97,415 shares in the company, valued at $7,011,931.70. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,900 shares of company stock valued at $842,005. 4.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Prosperity Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Prosperity Bancshares from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Prosperity Bancshares from $85.00 to $78.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Hovde Group decreased their price target on shares of Prosperity Bancshares from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Prosperity Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.80.

Prosperity Bancshares Company Profile

Prosperity Bancshares, Inc operates as bank holding company for the Prosperity Bank that provides financial products and services to businesses and consumers. It accepts various deposit products, such as demand, savings, money market, and time accounts, as well as and certificates of deposit. The company also offers 1-4 family residential mortgage, commercial real estate and multifamily residential, commercial and industrial, agricultural, and non-real estate agricultural loans, as well as construction, land development, and other land loans; consumer loans, including automobile, recreational vehicle, boat, home improvement, personal, and deposit account collateralized loans; term loans and lines of credit; and consumer durables and home equity loans, as well as loans for working capital, business expansion, and purchase of equipment and machinery.