Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Sees Large Volume Increase After Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Preferred Bank shares saw unusually strong trading volume after the company reported earnings that beat Wall Street expectations, with the stock last trading slightly higher at $107.61.
• The bank posted Q earnings of $2.78 per share, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65, while reporting a return on equity of 17.52% and a net margin of 26.49%.
• Preferred Bank also continued rewarding shareholders with a quarterly dividend of $0.80 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 3.0% and a payout ratio near 30%.

Shares of Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC - Get Free Report) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. Approximately 58,365 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the previous session's volume of 109,819 shares.The stock last traded at $107.6050 and had previously closed at $106.04.

The bank reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.13. Preferred Bank had a return on equity of 17.52% and a net margin of 26.49%.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 7th were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 7th. Preferred Bank's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on PFBC shares. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Preferred Bank from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Preferred Bank from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Preferred Bank presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $102.00.

Institutional Trading of Preferred Bank

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Preferred Bank by 1,224.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 331 shares of the bank's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in Preferred Bank by 1,992.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 523 shares of the bank's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Preferred Bank in the third quarter worth about $70,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Preferred Bank during the 4th quarter valued at about $91,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 192.1% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the bank's stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the period. 72.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Preferred Bank Stock Up 0.9%

The stock has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a PE ratio of 9.99 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company's 50-day moving average price is $100.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.75.

Preferred Bank Company Profile

Preferred Bank NASDAQ: PFBC is a California-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Los Angeles. The institution offers a full range of banking products and services to businesses and individuals, with a particular emphasis on commercial real estate lending, business banking, treasury management and deposit accounts. Preferred Bank operates through branch offices across Southern California and national loan production offices in major U.S. markets.

The bank's core lending portfolio focuses on commercial real estate acquisition, development and investment properties.

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