Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC) Shares Break Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Citizens & Northern shares broke above their 200-day moving average, reaching $25.43 and last trading at $25.20 versus the $23.55 long-term average.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: the stock has an average “Hold” rating and a $23.50 price target, below its current trading level.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.79 in EPS versus $0.63 forecast, and maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.28, equivalent to a 4.4% annualized yield.

Shares of Citizens & Northern Corp (NASDAQ:CZNC - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $23.55 and traded as high as $25.43. Citizens & Northern shares last traded at $25.20, with a volume of 45,126 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on CZNC. Wall Street Zen lowered Citizens & Northern from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, September 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Citizens & Northern from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Citizens & Northern from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $23.50.

Citizens & Northern Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $451.84 million, a P/E ratio of 17.03 and a beta of 0.41. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $25.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Citizens & Northern (NASDAQ:CZNC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.16. Citizens & Northern had a return on equity of 9.54% and a net margin of 13.28%.The business had revenue of $39.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.60 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Citizens & Northern Corp will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens & Northern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. Citizens & Northern's payout ratio is currently 75.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens & Northern

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Citizens & Northern in the second quarter worth $42,000. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Citizens & Northern by 932.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,753 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 6,099 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Citizens & Northern in the 2nd quarter valued at $367,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Citizens & Northern in the 2nd quarter valued at $399,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Citizens & Northern by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 17,956 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 1,523 shares during the last quarter. 30.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Citizens & Northern

Citizens & Northern Corporation is a bank holding company for Citizens & Northern Bank, a community banking institution headquartered in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1864, the bank serves individuals, families, farmers, businesses and organizations through a network of offices in north-central Pennsylvania and southern New York.

Citizens & Northern Bank offers a range of traditional banking products, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer loans, residential mortgages, commercial loans and agricultural lending.

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