Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $98.88 and last traded at $98.88, with a volume of 5805 shares. The stock had previously closed at $95.67.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PFBC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Preferred Bank from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Preferred Bank from $88.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th.

Preferred Bank Trading Up 3.0 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $85.08 and a 200-day moving average of $80.53. The company has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of 9.59 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.07. Preferred Bank had a net margin of 26.20% and a return on equity of 19.01%. The company had revenue of $132.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $68.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Preferred Bank will post 9.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Preferred Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 7th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 7th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. Preferred Bank’s payout ratio is 28.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Preferred Bank

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Preferred Bank during the third quarter valued at $54,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd lifted its stake in Preferred Bank by 69.9% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 848 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Preferred Bank in the 3rd quarter worth about $76,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in Preferred Bank by 96.4% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the bank’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Preferred Bank by 35.1% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,486 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.77% of the company’s stock.

About Preferred Bank

Preferred Bank provides various commercial banking products and services to small and mid-sized businesses and their owners, entrepreneurs, real estate developers and investors, professionals, and high net worth individuals. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts; fixed-rate and fixed maturity retail, and non-retail certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts.