OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) Sets New 52-Week Low - Here's Why

Key Points

• OceanFirst Financial fell to a new 52-week low of $16.66, below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages. Analysts maintain an overall “Hold” rating, with an average price target of $21.50.
• The company’s latest quarterly results matched expectations at $0.43 EPS, though revenue of $131.33 million came in below the $135.62 million consensus estimate.
• OceanFirst pays a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, equating to a 4.8% annualized yield, while insiders recently sold shares and institutional investors own nearly 71% of the stock.

OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $16.66 and last traded at $16.72, with a volume of 918481 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered OceanFirst Financial from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $21.00 price target (up from $19.00) on shares of OceanFirst Financial in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five 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 $21.50.

OceanFirst Financial Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company's 50-day moving average is $18.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.71.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43. The business had revenue of $131.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.62 million. OceanFirst Financial had a return on equity of 5.34% and a net margin of 6.38%. As a group, equities analysts predict that OceanFirst Financial Corp. will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

OceanFirst Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. OceanFirst Financial's payout ratio is currently 94.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Brian Schaeffer sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.91, for a total value of $104,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 83,068 shares in the company, valued at $1,570,815.88. This represents a 6.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Buran sold 113,463 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.40, for a total transaction of $2,201,182.20. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 5.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On OceanFirst Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of OceanFirst Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $10,209,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial in the second quarter worth $194,135,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial in the second quarter worth $12,593,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in OceanFirst Financial in the second quarter worth $1,676,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in OceanFirst Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,494,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

About OceanFirst Financial

OceanFirst Financial Corp. is the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank, a community-focused financial institution headquartered in Toms River, New Jersey. OceanFirst Bank provides banking and financial services to individuals, families, businesses and nonprofit organizations through its branch network and digital banking platforms.

The bank's products and services include checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential mortgages, home equity loans, consumer lending, commercial real estate financing, business loans and lines of credit.

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