StockNews.com Downgrades Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC) to Sell

StockNews.com cut shares of Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Separately, TheStreet downgraded shares of Citizens & Northern from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th.

Citizens & Northern Stock Performance

Shares of CZNC traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $17.05. 30,973 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 24,701. Citizens & Northern has a fifty-two week low of $16.71 and a fifty-two week high of $23.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $262.23 million, a P/E ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 0.44. The business's 50 day moving average is $17.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 11th. The financial services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.08). Citizens & Northern had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 17.51%. The business had revenue of $25.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.39 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Citizens & Northern will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens & Northern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.57%. Citizens & Northern's payout ratio is currently 71.34%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens & Northern

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Citizens & Northern by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,150 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 1,409 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in Citizens & Northern by 40.1% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 5,603 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Citizens & Northern in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Citizens & Northern by 33.4% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 19,618 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 4,914 shares during the period. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Citizens & Northern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 30.83% of the company's stock.

Citizens & Northern Company Profile

Citizens & Northern Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Citizens & Northern Bank that provides various banking and related services to individual and corporate customers. Its deposit products include various types of checking accounts, passbook and statement savings, money market accounts, interest checking accounts, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; and lending products, including commercial, mortgage, and consumer loans, as well as specialized instruments, such as commercial letters-of-credit.