Insider Selling: Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Sells 3,000 Shares of Stock

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $82,770.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 225,085 shares in the company, valued at $6,210,095.15. This trade represents a 1.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Trading Up 0.3%

FMAO stock traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $27.87. The company had a trading volume of 73,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 51,544. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.59 and a 52 week high of $29.83. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $26.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.14. The stock has a market cap of $383.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.68 and a beta of 0.82.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $32.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.54 million. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp had a net margin of 18.54% and a return on equity of 9.85%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FMAO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Hovde Group dropped their price objective on Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from $30.00 to $28.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and set a $28.50 target price (up from $28.00) on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FMAO. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 1,659.8% in the 4th quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. now owns 485,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,991,000 after acquiring an additional 457,500 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Hicks Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in the third quarter worth $363,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 15.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 17,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 2,326 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 37.0% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 38,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $977,000 after purchasing an additional 10,279 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 23.96% of the company’s stock.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Company Profile

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) is the bank holding company for Farmers & Merchants Bank of Central California, a community-focused institution headquartered in Los Banos, California. The bank traces its roots to 1916 and has grown to serve individuals, businesses and agricultural enterprises throughout the western San Joaquin Valley. Operating with a commitment to local decision-making, the company emphasizes personalized service and close ties to the communities in which it operates.

Through its banking subsidiary, Farmers & Merchants offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, online and mobile banking platforms, and merchant services.