Zacks Research Downgrades Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) to Strong Sell

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) from "hold" to "strong sell", while other analysts remain mixed and the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target price of $41.00.
• Towne's latest quarter showed EPS of $0.74 that matched estimates but revenue of $247.62M missed the $274.02M consensus despite a 34.6% year‑over‑year revenue increase; the stock trades around $34.97 with a market cap of $2.76B and a P/E of 17.66.

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

TOWN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Hovde Group cut their price target on shares of Towne Bank from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Towne Bank in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.00.

Towne Bank Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of TOWN opened at $34.97 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Towne Bank has a 12-month low of $31.91 and a 12-month high of $37.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $34.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.66 and a beta of 0.72.

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74. The company had revenue of $247.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $274.02 million. Towne Bank had a net margin of 13.51% and a return on equity of 10.48%. Towne Bank's quarterly revenue was up 34.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Towne Bank will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Towne Bank

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in TOWN. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Towne Bank by 931.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 753 shares of the bank's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 680 shares during the last quarter. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Towne Bank in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Towne Bank by 150.3% in the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 816 shares of the bank's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Towne Bank in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Towne Bank during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. 55.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Towne Bank

TowneBank is a Virginia‐based financial services company organized as a bank holding company. Its primary subsidiary, TowneBank, operates a network of community banking offices and mortgage production facilities. The company offers a comprehensive range of commercial and consumer banking solutions, including deposit accounts, lending products, treasury management, and private banking services tailored to individuals, small businesses, and middle‐market corporations.

In addition to traditional banking, TowneBank provides specialty services through affiliated subsidiaries.

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