Nuveen LLC Invests $3.72 Million in Peoples Bancorp Inc. $PEBO

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new position in Peoples Bancorp Inc. by purchasing 125,454 shares worth approximately $3.72 million, which represents about 0.35% ownership.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on Peoples Bancorp's stock, with two analysts rating it as a "Buy" and two issuing a "Hold" rating, resulting in an average rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Peoples Bancorp recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.41 per share, reflecting a 5.3% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 56.16%.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 125,454 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $3,721,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.35% of Peoples Bancorp at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 9.0% in the first quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 25,430 shares of the bank's stock valued at $754,000 after acquiring an additional 2,091 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 30.5% in the first quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 15,382 shares of the bank's stock valued at $456,000 after acquiring an additional 3,591 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp in the first quarter valued at about $289,000. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp in the first quarter valued at about $694,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in Peoples Bancorp in the first quarter valued at about $4,986,000. Institutional investors own 60.68% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Carol A. Schneeberger sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.76, for a total value of $31,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,330 shares in the company, valued at $804,480.80. The trade was a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Dwight Eric Smith purchased 1,060 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $30.27 per share, with a total value of $32,086.20. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 6,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $211,859.73. The trade was a 17.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEBO traded down $0.15 during trading on Monday, reaching $30.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 102,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 154,469. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.60 and a beta of 0.67. Peoples Bancorp Inc. has a 12 month low of $26.21 and a 12 month high of $37.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $30.26 and a 200-day moving average of $29.86.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.18). Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.46% and a net margin of 16.88%.The firm had revenue of $115.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.20 million. Research analysts expect that Peoples Bancorp Inc. will post 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Peoples Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th were given a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 4th. Peoples Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PEBO. Wall Street Zen cut Peoples Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Peoples Bancorp from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $35.25.

Peoples Bancorp Profile

Peoples Bancorp Inc operates as the holding company for Peoples Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking products and services. The company accepts various deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and governmental deposits; and provides commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, construction, finance, residential real estate, and consumer indirect and direct loans, as well as home equity lines of credit and overdrafts.