OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) Receives "Hold (C)" Rating from Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• OceanFirst Financial received a "Hold (C)" rating from Weiss Ratings, with a consensus rating also reported as "Hold" and a price target of $20.67.
• Shares were recently trading at $18.27, reflecting a market capitalization of $1.05 billion and a PE ratio of 12.96.
• Notably, Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell," indicating a divergence in analyst sentiment.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating reissued by stock analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Separately, Zacks Research downgraded shares of OceanFirst Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, September 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.67.

OceanFirst Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:OCFC opened at $18.27 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a PE ratio of 12.96 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's fifty day moving average is $17.70 and its 200-day moving average is $17.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.01. OceanFirst Financial has a 52 week low of $14.29 and a 52 week high of $21.87.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.02). OceanFirst Financial had a net margin of 12.89% and a return on equity of 5.22%. The firm had revenue of $99.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.26 million. Sell-side analysts predict that OceanFirst Financial will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 132.3% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 7,325 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $125,000 after purchasing an additional 4,172 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 458.0% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 8,526 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $150,000 after purchasing an additional 6,998 shares during the period. EMC Capital Management grew its stake in OceanFirst Financial by 8.7% during the second quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 9,952 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial during the first quarter valued at $175,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in OceanFirst Financial by 7.0% during the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 10,285 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $181,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About OceanFirst Financial

OceanFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. that provides community banking services to retail and commercial customers. It accepts money market accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, non-interest-bearing accounts, and time deposits, that includes brokered deposits to retail, government, and business customers.

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