VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) Lowered to “Strong Sell” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on VBNK. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on VersaBank from $10.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of VersaBank in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.00.

VersaBank Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:VBNK opened at $13.93 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $446.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.90 and a beta of 0.93. VersaBank has a 12 month low of $8.51 and a 12 month high of $17.47. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.63.

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27. VersaBank had a net margin of 10.03% and a return on equity of 7.70%. The firm had revenue of $26.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.92 million. Research analysts expect that VersaBank will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

VersaBank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.025 per share. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. VersaBank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of VBNK. Connors Investor Services Inc. increased its position in shares of VersaBank by 18.2% during the 3rd quarter. Connors Investor Services Inc. now owns 13,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Salzhauer Michael boosted its holdings in shares of VersaBank by 27.3% in the 3rd quarter. Salzhauer Michael now owns 21,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 4,600 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of VersaBank by 33.0% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 20,753 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 5,144 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its stake in shares of VersaBank by 5.8% in the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 148,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,804,000 after buying an additional 8,080 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Partners LP increased its holdings in VersaBank by 16.7% during the third quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP now owns 70,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $855,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. 56.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About VersaBank

VersaBank is a Canadian Schedule I chartered bank that operates as a fully digital institution, offering a range of deposit and lending solutions through its proprietary technology platform. Headquartered in London, Ontario, the bank has chosen to forego a traditional branch network in favor of online and digital distribution, enabling it to serve clients across Canada and the United States with efficiency and lower overhead.

The bank’s primary business activities include the origination and securitization of commercial loans, equipment financing, residential mortgages and construction loans.