Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Metropolitan Bank (MCB) from a "hold" to a "buy"; other analysts have also turned positive—Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $105 and Zacks moved to "strong-buy"—leaving a consensus rating of Buy with a $92 price target.
• Quarterly results beat expectations: MCB reported $2.77 EPS vs. $2.07 expected and $88.41M revenue vs. $83.15M, with a net margin of 13.49% and return on equity of 9.69%; the stock trades at a P/E of 12.54 and a market cap of $1.04B.
• Insiders have been selling recently—15,695 shares worth $1.47M sold over the last 90 days (including sales by an EVP and a director)—while insiders own 6.09% of shares and institutional investors hold about 79.83%.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on MCB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Metropolitan Bank in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Metropolitan Bank from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Metropolitan Bank currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $92.00.

Metropolitan Bank Stock Down 0.1%

MCB stock opened at $83.39 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.54 and a beta of 1.13. Metropolitan Bank has a 12 month low of $47.08 and a 12 month high of $97.84. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $86.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.70. The firm had revenue of $88.41 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $83.15 million. Metropolitan Bank had a net margin of 13.49% and a return on equity of 9.69%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Metropolitan Bank will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nick Rosenberg sold 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.21, for a total value of $112,762.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,839 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,330,936.19. The trade was a 4.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert C. Patent sold 4,445 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.28, for a total transaction of $410,184.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 84,240 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,773,667.20. This represents a 5.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 15,695 shares of company stock valued at $1,472,847 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 6.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Metropolitan Bank

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Metropolitan Bank by 70.4% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 346 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new stake in Metropolitan Bank during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 41.5% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,670 shares of the company's stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.83% of the company's stock.

About Metropolitan Bank

Metropolitan Bank NYSE: MCB, through its principal subsidiary Metropolitan Commercial Bank, operates as a New York–based regional financial institution providing a range of commercial and consumer banking services. The company offers deposit products including checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as business and personal certificates of deposit. On the lending side, Metropolitan Bank extends commercial real estate financing, equipment loans, working capital lines of credit and consumer installment loans tailored to the needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises and individual customers.

In addition to traditional deposit and lending services, Metropolitan Bank provides specialized treasury and cash-management solutions, foreign exchange services and letters of credit for both domestic businesses and multinational clients.

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