Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB) Holdings Decreased by Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC

Key Points

• Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC reduced its stake in Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. by 4.3%, holding approximately $9.79 million worth of shares, making it the firm's fifth largest position.
• Metropolitan Bank recently reported earnings of $1.76 per share, exceeding analyst expectations of $1.62, and announced a share repurchase plan worth $50 million to buy back up to 6.4% of its shares.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, which translates to an annualized yield of 0.9%, highlighting a dividend payout ratio of 9.72%.

Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC decreased its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB - Free Report) by 4.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 174,913 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,818 shares during the quarter. Metropolitan Bank comprises approximately 2.6% of Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC owned approximately 1.64% of Metropolitan Bank worth $9,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank in the 4th quarter worth about $128,000. LPL Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the 4th quarter valued at about $956,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 645,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,689,000 after purchasing an additional 10,545 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $960,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 1,726.5% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 149,280 shares of the company's stock worth $8,718,000 after purchasing an additional 141,107 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.83% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Metropolitan Bank news, EVP Nick Rosenberg sold 1,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.05, for a total transaction of $93,812.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 29,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,220,654.45. This represents a 4.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert C. Patent sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.40, for a total value of $392,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 108,685 shares in the company, valued at $8,520,904. The trade was a 4.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 63,281 shares of company stock worth $4,299,933 over the last quarter. 6.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Hovde Group boosted their price target on Metropolitan Bank from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Metropolitan Bank from $81.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st.

Metropolitan Bank Trading Down 0.5%

MCB stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $68.94. 17,830 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 101,456. Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. has a 1-year low of $42.92 and a 1-year high of $80.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $69.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $718.35 million, a PE ratio of 11.17 and a beta of 1.13.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $76.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $72.50 million. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 13.68%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Metropolitan Bank declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 17th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Metropolitan Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 28th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Metropolitan Bank's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.72%.

Metropolitan Bank Company Profile

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Metropolitan Commercial Bank that provides a range of business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, public entities, and individuals in the New York metropolitan area.