Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Zacks Research, reflecting increased confidence in the company's stock performance.
• Despite the upgrade, other analysts have mixed opinions; Stephens lowered its price target from $28.00 to $26.00, while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised theirs from $32.00 to $33.00.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.52, exceeding estimates, with expectations of a projected 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on SBCF. Stephens lowered their price objective on Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price objective on Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $29.40.

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida Price Performance

SBCF stock opened at $30.97 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.98. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida has a 1 year low of $21.36 and a 1 year high of $31.68.

Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ:SBCF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $151.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $146.08 million. Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida had a return on equity of 6.65% and a net margin of 16.63%.During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.36 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida in the first quarter valued at $27,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida by 343.9% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 994 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida by 38.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida by 24.0% in the second quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,940 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida by 28.1% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. 81.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida

Seacoast Banking Corp. of Florida is a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of integrated financial services. It provides banking and investment services to businesses and consumers, including personal and business deposit products, Internet and mobile banking, personal, commercial and mortgage loans, wealth management services, and treasury management solutions.

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