USCB Financial (NASDAQ:USCB) Lowered to "Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded USCB Financial from a "hold" to a "sell", though the stock's average analyst rating remains Buy with an average target price of $22.00.
• In the latest quarter USCB reported $0.47 EPS versus a $0.48 consensus (a slight miss) and $26.18 million in revenue (just above estimates); the shares trade near $19.12 with a market cap of about $349 million and a P/E of 13.37.
• Company insiders have recently sold stock (CEO sold 10,000 shares; EVP sold 8,000), yet insiders still own 49.50% of the company while hedge funds and other institutions hold roughly 61.34%.

USCB Financial (NASDAQ:USCB - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on USCB. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of USCB Financial in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded USCB Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, USCB Financial has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $22.00.

USCB Financial Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ USCB opened at $19.12 on Friday. USCB Financial has a 52 week low of $15.56 and a 52 week high of $20.78. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $349.07 million, a P/E ratio of 13.37 and a beta of 0.60.

USCB Financial (NASDAQ:USCB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.01). USCB Financial had a return on equity of 15.44% and a net margin of 17.04%.The company had revenue of $26.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.95 million. Research analysts anticipate that USCB Financial will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at USCB Financial

In related news, CEO La Aguilera Luis De sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.02, for a total transaction of $180,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 245,893 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,430,991.86. This trade represents a 3.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Andres Collazo sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Saturday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.27, for a total value of $146,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 32,950 shares in the company, valued at approximately $601,996.50. This represents a 19.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 49.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On USCB Financial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of USCB. Patriot Financial Partners GP II L.P. purchased a new position in shares of USCB Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,527,000. North Reef Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of USCB Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,279,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of USCB Financial by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 973,088 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,095,000 after buying an additional 79,983 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of USCB Financial by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,316,580 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,252,000 after buying an additional 71,728 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of USCB Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $748,000. 61.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

USCB Financial Company Profile

USCB Financial NASDAQ: USCB is a bank holding company headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina, serving as the parent company of United Security Bank. Established to support community banking in the Midlands region, the company focuses on relationship-driven financial services tailored to both individuals and businesses. As a regional player, USCB Financial emphasizes personalized service through a network of full-service branch offices.

The company’s core business activities include commercial and consumer lending, deposit products and alternative delivery channels.

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