Nuveen LLC Invests $13.16 Million in OceanFirst Financial Corp. $OCFC

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has made a significant investment of $13.16 million in OceanFirst Financial Corp., acquiring 773,663 shares, which represents approximately 1.33% ownership of the company.
• Despite recent investments from various institutional players, Wall Street analysts have revised the target price for OceanFirst Financial from $21.00 to $20.00 with a "market perform" rating.
• The company's last earnings report indicated missed estimates, with earnings per share of $0.31 compared to the consensus estimate of $0.33, and revenue falling short of projections as well.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 773,663 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $13,160,000. Nuveen LLC owned 1.33% of OceanFirst Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in OCFC. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 19,454 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $352,000 after buying an additional 716 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 8.1% in the 4th 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. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 32,732 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $592,000 after purchasing an additional 1,141 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in OceanFirst Financial by 807.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,843 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,640 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its position in OceanFirst Financial by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 66,915 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $1,138,000 after buying an additional 1,774 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of OceanFirst Financial from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.67.

OceanFirst Financial Trading Down 0.8%

OCFC stock opened at $17.20 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $17.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.16. The stock has a market cap of $986.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20 and a beta of 1.04. OceanFirst Financial Corp. has a one year low of $14.29 and a one year high of $21.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

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

OceanFirst Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 4th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. OceanFirst Financial's dividend payout ratio is 56.74%.

About OceanFirst Financial

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.

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