Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) Hits New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $35.50 and last traded at $35.5150, with a volume of 9331 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $35.14.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Hovde Group increased their price objective on Peoples Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a report on Friday, May 29th. DA Davidson increased their price target on Peoples Bancorp from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Peoples Bancorp from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Peoples Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Peoples Bancorp Trading Up 0.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The business’s 50 day moving average is $34.04 and its 200 day moving average is $32.42. The stock has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 0.62.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $119.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $118.72 million. Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.75% and a net margin of 17.92%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Peoples Bancorp Inc. will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peoples Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 18th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This is a positive change from Peoples Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Peoples Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Carol A. Schneeberger sold 1,895 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.37, for a total value of $59,446.15. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 19,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $605,723.33. This trade represents a 8.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Dwight Eric Smith purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $34.51 per share, for a total transaction of $34,510.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 9,256 shares in the company, valued at $319,424.56. This represents a 12.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 3.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Peoples Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its stake in Peoples Bancorp by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 24,366 shares of the bank’s stock worth $801,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in Peoples Bancorp by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 24,348 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $731,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 2.5% in the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 16,600 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $508,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 35,520 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 15,582 shares of the bank’s stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.68% of the company’s stock.

About Peoples Bancorp

Peoples Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Marietta, Ohio. Through its subsidiary Peoples Bank, the company provides a comprehensive range of commercial and consumer banking services designed to serve individuals, businesses and institutional clients. Its deposit products include checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit and digital banking platforms that enable secure online and mobile access.

On the lending side, Peoples Bancorp offers commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate financing, construction and agricultural lending, as well as residential mortgage products.