Nuveen LLC Makes New Investment in Community Financial System, Inc. $CBU

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new stake in Community Financial System, Inc. by purchasing 163,453 shares valued at approximately $9.29 million.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.46 to $0.47 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.1%.
• Community Financial System reported quarterly earnings of $0.97 per share, missing the consensus estimate of $1.03, with revenue also below expectations.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Community Financial System, Inc. (NYSE:CBU - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 163,453 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $9,294,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.31% of Community Financial System as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CBU. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Community Financial System by 2.9% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 262,245 shares of the bank's stock valued at $14,911,000 after purchasing an additional 7,376 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of Community Financial System by 7.4% during the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 26,478 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,506,000 after acquiring an additional 1,823 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Community Financial System by 11.7% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 83,987 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,775,000 after purchasing an additional 8,810 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Community Financial System by 19.8% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,798 shares of the bank's stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Community Financial System by 14,655.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 17,854 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,015,000 after acquiring an additional 17,733 shares during the last quarter. 73.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CBU has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Community Financial System from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Community Financial System from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Community Financial System currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.00.

Community Financial System Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:CBU traded down $0.69 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $59.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 192,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 327,709. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Community Financial System, Inc. has a one year low of $49.44 and a one year high of $73.39. The business's 50-day moving average is $57.04 and its 200-day moving average is $57.08. The company has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.31 and a beta of 0.80.

Community Financial System (NYSE:CBU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by ($0.06). Community Financial System had a net margin of 19.91% and a return on equity of 10.71%. The firm had revenue of $199.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $201.93 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Community Financial System, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Community Financial System Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This is a boost from Community Financial System's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Community Financial System's dividend payout ratio is 50.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Community Financial System news, SVP Jeffrey M. Levy sold 1,440 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.38, for a total transaction of $88,387.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,657 shares in the company, valued at $408,606.66. This trade represents a 17.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.01% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Community Financial System Company Profile

Community Bank System, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Community Bank, N.A. that provides various banking and other financial services to retail, commercial, institutional, and municipal customers. It operates through three segments: Banking, Employee Benefit Services, and All Other. The company offers various deposits products, such as interest and noninterest -bearing checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as time deposits.