Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

Middlefield Banc Stock Performance

NASDAQ MBCN opened at $31.50 on Tuesday. Middlefield Banc has a 52-week low of $20.61 and a 52-week high of $37.00. The stock has a market cap of $254.21 million, a PE ratio of 17.90 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $28.55 and a 200-day moving average of $25.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $16.82 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.10 million. Middlefield Banc had a return on equity of 6.90% and a net margin of 13.31%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Middlefield Banc will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Middlefield Banc

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MBCN. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Middlefield Banc by 1.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 386,196 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,222,000 after acquiring an additional 3,782 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 48.9% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,668 shares of the bank’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,204 shares in the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Middlefield Banc during the third quarter worth approximately $225,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 5.1% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,536 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 804 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

About Middlefield Banc

Middlefield Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, small business owners, and retail customers in northeastern and central Ohio. It offers checking, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, time certificates of deposit, commercial loans, real estate loans, various consumer loans, safe deposit facilities, and travelers' checks.