Stellarone (NYSE:STEL) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Stellarone's stock crossed above its 200‑day moving average, trading as high as $37.75 and last at $37.61 versus the 200‑day MA of $33.91, indicating recent bullish momentum.
• Analysts are mixed: two Buy and two Hold ratings produce an average rating of Moderate Buy with a consensus target of $37, while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded to "outperform" with a $44 target and Raymond James cut its rating to "hold."
• Fundamentals show EPS of $0.51 in line with estimates and revenue up 0.8% year‑over‑year, a P/E of 18.99, and a quarterly dividend of $0.15 (1.6% yield, ~30% payout ratio).

Stellarone Corp (NYSE:STEL - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $33.91 and traded as high as $37.75. Stellarone shares last traded at $37.61, with a volume of 236,142 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STEL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Stellarone from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings initiated coverage on shares of Stellarone in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a "buy (b-)" rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Stellarone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Stellarone presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Stellarone Price Performance

The company's 50 day moving average is $37.06 and its 200 day moving average is $33.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.99 and a beta of 0.75.

Stellarone (NYSE:STEL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Stellarone had a net margin of 17.25% and a return on equity of 6.30%. Stellarone's revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Stellarone Corp will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stellarone Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Stellarone's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.30%.

Institutional Trading of Stellarone

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. North Reef Capital Management LP lifted its position in Stellarone by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 2,875,245 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $88,960,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045,308 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stellarone by 34.6% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,237,830 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,556,000 after purchasing an additional 318,011 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Stellarone by 23,465.2% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 312,474 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,667,000 after purchasing an additional 311,148 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Stellarone by 46.9% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 429,115 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,277,000 after purchasing an additional 136,945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Stellarone by 288.7% during the third quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 181,271 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,500,000 after purchasing an additional 134,637 shares during the period. 54.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Stellarone

StellarOne Corporation is a bank holding company of StellarOne Bank (the Bank). The Bank is an independent commercial bank holding company. It offers services provided by full-service banks, including individual and commercial demand and time deposit accounts, commercial and consumer loans, residential mortgages, credit card services and deposit services. The Bank, through its commercial banking segment, offers Internet banking access for banking services, mobile banking and online bill payment for both consumers and commercial customers.

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