Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold Rating

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.25.

Peoples Bancorp Trading Down 1.0%

NASDAQ PEBO opened at $30.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.38 and a beta of 0.67. Peoples Bancorp has a one year low of $26.21 and a one year high of $37.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $30.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.78.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.18). Peoples Bancorp had a net margin of 16.88% and a return on equity of 9.46%. The business had revenue of $115.02 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $113.20 million. Analysts expect that Peoples Bancorp will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dwight Eric Smith bought 1,060 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $30.27 per share, for a total transaction of $32,086.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $211,859.73. This represents a 17.85% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Carol A. Schneeberger sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.83, for a total transaction of $30,830.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 24,330 shares in the company, valued at $750,093.90. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 1.6% during the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 24,400 shares of the bank’s stock worth $724,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 2.5% during the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 16,600 shares of the bank’s stock worth $508,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 1.5% during the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 27,110 shares of the bank’s stock worth $828,000 after buying an additional 410 shares during the period. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 3.9% during the second quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 11,034 shares of the bank’s stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Peoples Bancorp by 1.9% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 22,906 shares of the bank’s stock worth $700,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. 60.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Peoples Bancorp Company Profile

Peoples Bancorp Inc operates as the holding company for Peoples Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking products and services. The company accepts various deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and governmental deposits; and provides commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, construction, finance, residential real estate, and consumer indirect and direct loans, as well as home equity lines of credit and overdrafts.