OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $16.62, but opened at $17.70. OceanFirst Financial shares last traded at $16.61, with a volume of 20,405 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on OCFC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of OceanFirst Financial from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of OceanFirst Financial from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, OceanFirst Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.67.

OceanFirst Financial Trading Down 0.0%

The business's 50-day moving average price is $16.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $971.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.09 and a beta of 0.99.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The savings and loans company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.35. OceanFirst Financial had a net margin of 14.45% and a return on equity of 5.75%. The company had revenue of $97.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.66 million. Equities analysts expect that OceanFirst Financial Corp. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

OceanFirst Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. OceanFirst Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.29%.

Institutional Trading of OceanFirst Financial

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 807.9% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,843 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,640 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in OceanFirst Financial in the fourth quarter worth $57,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in OceanFirst Financial during the fourth quarter worth $65,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in OceanFirst Financial by 1,009.6% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 5,548 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 5,048 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EMC Capital Management boosted its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 6,001.3% during the fourth quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 9,152 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 9,002 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by 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.