Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Thursday.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Price Performance

Shares of PEBK stock opened at $26.96 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $147.15 million, a P/E ratio of 9.05 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina has a 1-year low of $23.74 and a 1-year high of $33.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $28.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.46.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 12.85%.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This is a positive change from Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.97%. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s payout ratio is 26.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PEBK. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 27.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,590 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 564 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina in the 4th quarter valued at about $82,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina in the 4th quarter valued at about $85,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,366 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 576 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 35.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,649 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219 shares during the last quarter. 43.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Company Profile

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Bank that provides various banking products and services for individuals and small-to medium-sized businesses. It offers checking, savings, money market, and retirement accounts; certificates of deposits; and credit and debit cards.