VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• VersaBank saw a 17% jump in trading volume to 55,456 shares on Monday while the stock traded up about 1.1% to $17.08.
• Analyst coverage is mixed with a consensus rating of Hold (one Buy, two Hold, one Sell) and a consensus target price of $13.00.
• The bank reported quarterly EPS of $0.27 (meeting estimates) with revenue of $26.8M slightly below expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.025 (annualized yield ~0.6%).

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK - Get Free Report) saw an uptick in trading volume on Monday . 55,456 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 17% from the previous session's volume of 47,596 shares.The stock last traded at $17.08 and had previously closed at $16.80.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on VBNK. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of VersaBank in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research cut shares of VersaBank from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $13.00.

VersaBank Trading Up 1.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $544.87 million, a PE ratio of 24.27 and a beta of 0.99. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $15.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.00.

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27. VersaBank had a net margin of 10.03% and a return on equity of 7.70%. The business had revenue of $26.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.92 million. Analysts forecast that VersaBank will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current year.

VersaBank Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.025 dividend. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. VersaBank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VersaBank

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Connors Investor Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of VersaBank by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter. Connors Investor Services Inc. now owns 13,000 shares of the company's stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Salzhauer Michael lifted its holdings in shares of VersaBank by 27.3% in the 3rd quarter. Salzhauer Michael now owns 21,443 shares of the company's stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 4,600 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of VersaBank by 33.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 20,753 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 5,144 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of VersaBank by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 148,391 shares of the company's stock worth $1,804,000 after acquiring an additional 8,080 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of VersaBank by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP now owns 70,000 shares of the company's stock worth $855,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.86% of the company's stock.

VersaBank Company Profile

VersaBank is a Canadian Schedule I chartered bank that operates as a fully digital institution, offering a range of deposit and lending solutions through its proprietary technology platform. Headquartered in London, Ontario, the bank has chosen to forego a traditional branch network in favor of online and digital distribution, enabling it to serve clients across Canada and the United States with efficiency and lower overhead.

The bank’s primary business activities include the origination and securitization of commercial loans, equipment financing, residential mortgages and construction loans.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.