Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ: PEBK) moved above its 200-day moving average on Friday, trading as high as $41.65 and last changing hands at $41.31.
• The company recently reported Q1 earnings of $0.80 per share on $21.57 million in revenue, while also posting a 13.24% return on equity and a 17.22% net margin.
• Peoples Bancorp also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.21 per share from $0.20, implying an annualized yield of about 2.0%; meanwhile, Weiss Ratings upgraded the stock to a buy (b) rating.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBK - Get Free Report) shares passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $36.36 and traded as high as $41.65. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina shares last traded at $41.31, with a volume of 23,353 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina has an average rating of "Buy".

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Trading Up 0.3%

The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $39.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.55 million, a PE ratio of 11.38 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 20th. The bank reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $21.57 million for the quarter. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 17.22%.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were paid a $0.21 dividend. This is an increase from Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina's payout ratio is presently 23.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James S. Abernethy sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.34, for a total transaction of $38,340.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 72,526 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,780,646.84. This represents a 1.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 3,323 shares of company stock valued at $129,232 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 14.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fourthstone LLC boosted its position in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 104.4% during the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 154,533 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,594,000 after buying an additional 78,921 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina in the first quarter valued at about $369,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina during the fourth quarter valued at about $304,000. Flywheel Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina during the first quarter valued at about $305,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 4.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 167,283 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,551,000 after purchasing an additional 7,404 shares during the period. 43.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Company Profile

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Hickory, North Carolina, that operates through its wholly owned subsidiary, Peoples Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of banking and financial services tailored to individuals, small businesses, and municipal clients in the western region of North Carolina.

Through its community banking network, Peoples Bancorp offers deposit products such as checking, savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside consumer and commercial lending solutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.