Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $27.45 and last traded at $27.45, with a volume of 91447 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CWBC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Community West Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Community West Bancshares in a report on Friday, March 27th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Community West Bancshares from $30.00 to $30.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Community West Bancshares in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $28.17.

Community West Bancshares Stock Down 1.8%

The company has a market cap of $731.70 million, a PE ratio of 12.49 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $24.64 and a 200-day moving average of $23.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.05. Community West Bancshares had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 20.77%.The business had revenue of $38.58 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.23 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Community West Bancshares will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Community West Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Community West Bancshares’s payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Community West Bancshares

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CWBC. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in Community West Bancshares in the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Community West Bancshares by 623.7% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,983 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 1,709 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Community West Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Community West Bancshares by 75.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Community West Bancshares by 2,945.9% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 3,270 shares in the last quarter. 33.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Community West Bancshares

Community West Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Community West Bank, headquartered in Goleta, California. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company offers a full suite of commercial and consumer banking services. Community West Bancshares focuses on providing personalized financial solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, professional practices, and individual customers in its service area.

The company’s product portfolio includes a variety of deposit accounts—such as business checking, savings and money market accounts—along with online and mobile banking capabilities.