Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Meridian Bank reported earnings of $0.49 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.42 by $0.07, with revenue totaling $32.45 million compared to the estimate of $29.65 million.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, reflecting a 3.36% annualized dividend yield.
• Institutional investors are increasing their stakes, with Goldman Sachs raising its ownership by 114.1% and Jane Street Group growing theirs by 178.7% in the first quarter.

Meridian Bank (NASDAQ:MRBK - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.07, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $32.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.65 million. Meridian Bank had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 10.73%.

Meridian Bank Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of MRBK traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.83. The company had a trading volume of 70,309 shares, compared to its average volume of 64,170. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $13.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.28 million, a P/E ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 0.67. Meridian Bank has a 1 year low of $10.04 and a 1 year high of $17.33.

Meridian Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. Meridian Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.06%.

Insider Transactions at Meridian Bank

In other Meridian Bank news, Director Robert M. Casciato purchased 2,000 shares of Meridian Bank stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $13.79 per share, for a total transaction of $27,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 215,396 shares in the company, valued at $2,970,310.84. This trade represents a 0.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have purchased a total of 3,208 shares of company stock valued at $44,416 in the last ninety days. 14.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meridian Bank

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MRBK. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Meridian Bank by 114.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 83,179 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,198,000 after acquiring an additional 44,332 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Meridian Bank by 178.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 65,483 shares of the company's stock worth $943,000 after buying an additional 41,984 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meridian Bank during the 1st quarter worth $209,000. 58.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRBK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Meridian Bank from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Meridian Bank from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Meridian Bank Company Profile

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.