Renaissance Technologies LLC Lowers Stake in Peoples Bancorp Inc. $PEBO

Renaissance Technologies LLC cut its position in Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) by 81.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,311 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 65,375 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Peoples Bancorp were worth $503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PEBO. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Peoples Bancorp by 212.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 75,628 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,486,000 after buying an additional 51,445 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 56.4% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 201,967 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,639,000 after acquiring an additional 72,870 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 39.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,558 shares of the bank’s stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 1,301 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 0.9% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,270,134 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,619,000 after purchasing an additional 21,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenwood Gearhart LLC bought a new stake in Peoples Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $240,000. 60.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEBO opened at $41.07 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 0.61. Peoples Bancorp Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.49 and a 1 year high of $42.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.11. Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.71% and a net margin of 19.17%.The firm had revenue of $121.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $120.05 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Peoples Bancorp Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Peoples Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Peoples Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.76%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Peoples Bancorp news, Director Dwight Eric Smith acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $39.81 per share, for a total transaction of $39,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $408,291.36. This trade represents a 10.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Matthew Edgell sold 3,000 shares of Peoples Bancorp stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.27, for a total transaction of $123,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $832,952.41. The trade was a 12.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a report on Friday, May 29th. Hovde Group increased their price objective on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler set a $46.00 target price on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.00.

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.