AlphaQuest LLC Acquires 36,170 Shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:PPBI)

AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:PPBI) by 78.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,034 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 36,170 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC owned about 0.09% of Pacific Premier Bancorp worth $2,044,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PPBI. Algert Global LLC lifted its position in Pacific Premier Bancorp by 22.0% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 234,616 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,903,000 after purchasing an additional 42,357 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 150,535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,787,000 after buying an additional 8,145 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Pacific Premier Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $784,000. Azora Capital LP purchased a new position in Pacific Premier Bancorp in the third quarter worth $12,187,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in Pacific Premier Bancorp by 71.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 203,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,123,000 after acquiring an additional 84,859 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.11% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael S. Karr sold 10,290 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.87, for a total transaction of $276,492.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 79,474 shares in the company, valued at $2,135,466.38. This represents a 11.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, DA Davidson dropped their price target on Pacific Premier Bancorp from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.00.

Pacific Premier Bancorp Price Performance

PPBI stock opened at $22.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $24.61 and its 200 day moving average is $25.55. Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.52 and a 52 week high of $30.28.

Pacific Premier Bancorp (NASDAQ:PPBI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.03. Pacific Premier Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.43% and a net margin of 17.54%. Research analysts predict that Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Pacific Premier Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.93%. Pacific Premier Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 80.49%.

About Pacific Premier Bancorp

Pacific Premier Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Pacific Premier Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts deposit products, which includes checking, money market, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit. Its loan portfolio includes commercial real estate owner and non-owner-occupied, multifamily, construction and land, franchise real estate secured, and small business administration (SBA); revolving lines of credit, term loans, seasonal loans, and loans secured by liquid collateral; one-to-four family and home equity lines of credit loans; and small balance personal unsecured loans and savings account secured loans.