Peapack-Gladstone Financial (NASDAQ:PGC) Cut to "Sell" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Peapack-Gladstone Financial has been downgraded from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating by analysts at Wall Street Zen.
• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target for Peapack-Gladstone from $38.00 to $35.00 while maintaining an "outperform" rating.
• The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.16.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial (NASDAQ:PGC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial from $38.00 to $35.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $36.33.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Price Performance

Shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial stock opened at $28.46 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $27.54 and a 200-day moving average of $28.51. Peapack-Gladstone Financial has a 52-week low of $23.96 and a 52-week high of $37.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $502.32 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.55 and a beta of 0.91.

Peapack-Gladstone Financial (NASDAQ:PGC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.16). Peapack-Gladstone Financial had a net margin of 7.62% and a return on equity of 5.25%. The firm had revenue of $69.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $69.77 million. Equities research analysts expect that Peapack-Gladstone Financial will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Peapack-Gladstone Financial

In related news, CEO Douglas L. Kennedy purchased 3,720 shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $26.24 per share, for a total transaction of $97,612.80. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 39,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,026,744.96. The trade was a 10.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 7.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peapack-Gladstone Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PGC. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Peapack-Gladstone Financial by 338.9% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 913 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Peapack-Gladstone Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Peapack-Gladstone Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $201,000. Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new position in Peapack-Gladstone Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in Peapack-Gladstone Financial by 389.8% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 5,266 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.75% of the company's stock.

About Peapack-Gladstone Financial

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Peapack-Gladstone Bank that provides private banking and wealth management services in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Banking and Peapack Private. It offers checking and savings accounts, money market and interest-bearing checking accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.

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