Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Key Points

• Metropolitan Bank shares gapped down after reporting disappointing quarterly earnings, with earnings per share of $0.67 missing analysts' expectations by $1.28.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, with a yield of 0.9%, and a share buyback program authorizing up to $50 million in stock repurchases.
• Zacks Research downgraded the bank's rating from "strong-buy" to "hold," while three analysts currently rate the stock as a Buy and two as a Hold.

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $74.51, but opened at $71.89. Metropolitan Bank shares last traded at $70.81, with a volume of 30,428 shares.

The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($1.28). The business had revenue of $79.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.28 million. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 13.68%.

Metropolitan Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 30th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Metropolitan Bank's payout ratio is presently 9.72%.

Metropolitan Bank announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, July 17th that permits the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MCB. Zacks Research cut shares of Metropolitan Bank from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Metropolitan Bank in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $81.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $82.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Metropolitan Bank

In related news, Director Robert C. Patent sold 5,000 shares of Metropolitan Bank stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.02, for a total value of $395,100.00. Following the sale, the director owned 98,685 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,798,088.70. This trade represents a 4.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Scott Lublin sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.36, for a total value of $371,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 41,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,062,070.44. This trade represents a 10.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 24,671 shares of company stock worth $1,858,653. 6.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new position in Metropolitan Bank during the third quarter worth about $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Metropolitan Bank by 289.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 596 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the first quarter valued at about $84,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 41.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,670 shares of the company's stock valued at $117,000 after buying an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Metropolitan Bank during the second quarter worth $208,000. 79.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Metropolitan Bank Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $76.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $733.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 1.11.

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.

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