Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $245.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $245.33 million. Towne Bank had a net margin of 13.51% and a return on equity of 9.91%.

Towne Bank Stock Up 1.6%

NASDAQ TOWN traded up $0.59 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $36.54. 219,438 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 554,690. The company’s 50-day moving average is $35.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.89. Towne Bank has a one year low of $31.91 and a one year high of $37.86. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.45 and a beta of 0.69.

Towne Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th were paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 26th. This is a positive change from Towne Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Towne Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Towne Bank

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Towne Bank by 34.8% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 569,906 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $19,018,000 after buying an additional 147,244 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in Towne Bank by 1,220.9% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 157,411 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,382,000 after acquiring an additional 145,494 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Towne Bank by 56.6% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 381,761 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,052,000 after acquiring an additional 137,988 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in Towne Bank by 188.2% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 195,283 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,751,000 after acquiring an additional 127,524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its stake in Towne Bank by 68.5% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 235,300 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,043,000 after acquiring an additional 95,625 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on TOWN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $38.00 target price (down from $42.00) on shares of Towne Bank in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Towne Bank from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Hovde Group decreased their price objective on shares of Towne Bank from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Towne Bank from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Towne Bank has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.50.

Towne Bank Company Profile

TowneBank is a Virginia‐based financial services company organized as a bank holding company. Its primary subsidiary, TowneBank, operates a network of community banking offices and mortgage production facilities. The company offers a comprehensive range of commercial and consumer banking solutions, including deposit accounts, lending products, treasury management, and private banking services tailored to individuals, small businesses, and middle‐market corporations.

In addition to traditional banking, TowneBank provides specialty services through affiliated subsidiaries.