Picton Mahoney Asset Management Increases Position in Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC)

Key Points

• Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its stake in Preferred Bank by an astonishing 2,337.8% during the first quarter, acquiring a total of 13,408 shares worth approximately $1.12 million.
• Analysts have raised price targets for Preferred Bank, with Piper Sandler setting a new target of $112.00 and DA Davidson at $108.00, reflecting positive sentiment towards the bank’s stock.
• The bank announced a $125 million stock buyback plan on May 22nd, indicating that its board considers shares to be undervalued, alongside a recent quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share.

Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its holdings in Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC - Free Report) by 2,337.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,408 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 12,858 shares during the quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management owned about 0.09% of Preferred Bank worth $1,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Preferred Bank in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main purchased a new position in shares of Preferred Bank in the fourth quarter valued at about $117,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Preferred Bank in the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 10.7% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,779 shares of the bank's stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corton Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Preferred Bank during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $238,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.77% of the company's stock.

Preferred Bank Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of Preferred Bank stock traded down $1.75 on Friday, hitting $89.07. 217,246 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 78,865. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 9.42 and a beta of 0.75. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $87.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.69. Preferred Bank has a 52 week low of $71.90 and a 52 week high of $99.78.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The bank reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.09. Preferred Bank had a return on equity of 16.64% and a net margin of 25.04%. The business had revenue of $69.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.96 million. Equities research analysts predict that Preferred Bank will post 9.81 EPS for the current year.

Preferred Bank declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $125.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to repurchase up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 8th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 8th. Preferred Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on PFBC shares. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Preferred Bank from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Preferred Bank from $96.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $91.00 target price on shares of Preferred Bank in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th.

About Preferred Bank

Preferred Bank provides various commercial banking products and services to small and mid-sized businesses and their owners, entrepreneurs, real estate developers and investors, professionals, and high net worth individuals. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts; fixed-rate and fixed maturity retail, and non-retail certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts.