Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Cut to "Hold" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Metropolitan Bank has been downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" rating by Zacks Research, indicating a shift in analyst sentiment regarding the stock's performance.
• The company has announced a share buyback program authorizing the purchase of $50 million in outstanding shares, reflecting the board's belief that the stock is undervalued.
• Despite recent downgrades, Metropolitan Bank maintains a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of approximately $82.67.

Zacks Research lowered shares of Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

MCB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Hovde Group upped their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $81.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Metropolitan Bank presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $82.67.

Metropolitan Bank Price Performance

NYSE MCB traded down $1.79 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $78.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 332,596 shares, compared to its average volume of 85,946. The stock has a market capitalization of $822.24 million, a PE ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $75.26 and a 200 day moving average of $66.25. Metropolitan Bank has a one year low of $47.08 and a one year high of $81.33.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $76.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 prior year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. Analysts expect that Metropolitan Bank will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Metropolitan Bank Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 28th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 28th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Metropolitan Bank's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.72%.

Metropolitan Bank declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 17th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Metropolitan Bank

In other Metropolitan Bank news, Director Terence J. Mitchell sold 4,796 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total transaction of $347,422.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 13,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at $958,381.20. This represents a 26.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Dale C. Fredston sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.65, for a total value of $235,950.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,114,313.20. The trade was a 17.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,696 shares of company stock worth $2,430,346 over the last three months. 6.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 289.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 596 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the first quarter valued at approximately $84,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 41.5% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,670 shares of the company's stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the second quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Metropolitan Bank in the first quarter worth $218,000. Institutional investors own 79.83% of the company's stock.

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.