Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Meridian Bank reported quarterly earnings of $0.58 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations by $0.08.
• The stock has a consensus price target of $17.50 following analysts rating it as a "Buy" with one firm claiming a "Strong Buy" rating.
• Institutional investors own 58.56% of the company's shares, reflecting strong interest from hedge funds in recent trading activities.

Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.08, Zacks reports. Meridian Bank had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 10.62%.

Meridian Bank Price Performance

Shares of MRBK traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $15.03. 65,096 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 63,804. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Meridian Bank has a fifty-two week low of $11.16 and a fifty-two week high of $17.33. The company has a market cap of $169.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.34 and a beta of 0.79. The firm's fifty day moving average is $15.31 and its 200 day moving average is $14.18.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meridian Bank

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MRBK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Meridian Bank by 26,887.5% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,318 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 4,302 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new position in Meridian Bank during the second quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Meridian Bank by 166.6% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,103 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 3,814 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Meridian Bank in the 2nd quarter valued at $106,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Meridian Bank in the 2nd quarter valued at $130,000. 58.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson raised shares of Meridian Bank to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Meridian Bank in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.50.

About Meridian Bank

Meridian Corporation operates as the holding company for Meridian Bank that provides commercial banking products and services in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Florida, and Maryland. The company offers various deposit products, such as demand non-interest bearing, demand interest bearing, savings accounts, money market accounts, and time deposits.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.