OceanFirst Financial Corp. $OCFC Shares Sold by Northern Trust Corp

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 3.0%, owning 536,733 shares valued at approximately $9.13 million at the end of the first quarter.
• OceanFirst Financial's stock was downgraded by Zacks Research from a "hold" to a "strong sell" rating, while it holds an average rating of "Hold" among analysts.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 4.4% with a payout ratio of 56.74%.

Northern Trust Corp lessened its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 536,733 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after selling 16,630 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.92% of OceanFirst Financial worth $9,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in OCFC. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial during the first quarter valued at $175,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $183,000. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $192,000. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 11,728 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 882 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 25.8% during the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 13,132 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 2,696 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

OceanFirst Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:OCFC traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $18.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 215,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 263,928. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $17.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.96 and a beta of 1.07. OceanFirst Financial Corp. has a 12-month low of $14.29 and a 12-month high of $21.87.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $99.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $101.26 million. OceanFirst Financial had a return on equity of 5.22% and a net margin of 12.89%. On average, analysts forecast that OceanFirst Financial Corp. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

OceanFirst Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 4th. OceanFirst Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Zacks Research downgraded shares of OceanFirst Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, September 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, OceanFirst Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.67.

OceanFirst Financial Profile

OceanFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. that provides community banking services to retail and commercial customers. It accepts money market accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, non-interest-bearing accounts, and time deposits, that includes brokered deposits to retail, government, and business customers.