ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB) Receives Average Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.25.

CNOB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Hovde Group increased their target price on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded ConnectOne Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Piper Sandler began coverage on ConnectOne Bancorp in a report on Monday, March 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $34.00 price target on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on ConnectOne Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ConnectOne Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in ConnectOne Bancorp by 195.6% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 728.4% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,566 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 129.1% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 1,958 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 791.0% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 4,042 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.70% of the company’s stock.

ConnectOne Bancorp Trading Down 1.0%

ConnectOne Bancorp stock opened at $32.44 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.75 and a beta of 1.06. ConnectOne Bancorp has a one year low of $21.79 and a one year high of $33.12. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $29.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.79.

ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $116.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.59 million. ConnectOne Bancorp had a net margin of 13.21% and a return on equity of 10.17%. On average, analysts forecast that ConnectOne Bancorp will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConnectOne Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.195 per share. This represents a $0.78 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from ConnectOne Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. ConnectOne Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 45.09%.

ConnectOne Bancorp Company Profile

ConnectOne Bancorp is a New Jersey‐based bank holding company whose primary subsidiary, ConnectOne Bank, offers a suite of commercial banking services to small and medium‐sized businesses, professionals and individuals. Established in 2005 and headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, the company seeks to deliver customized lending and deposit solutions through a network of branches across northern New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area.

The company’s lending portfolio centers on commercial real estate financing, construction lending, owner‐occupied real estate loans and working capital lines of credit.