German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $52.39 and last traded at $51.7570, with a volume of 12,877 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of German American Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of German American Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective (up from $51.00) on shares of German American Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of German American Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised German American Bancorp from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.33.

German American Bancorp Trading Up 1.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $49.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.81. The company has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26 and a beta of 0.62.

German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The bank reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $103.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $102.65 million. German American Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.33% and a net margin of 28.78%. On average, research analysts forecast that German American Bancorp, Inc. will post 3.95 EPS for the current year.

German American Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. German American Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.96%.

Institutional Trading of German American Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of German American Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $142,155,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in German American Bancorp by 2.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,219,958 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,982,000 after buying an additional 31,627 shares in the last quarter. German American Bancorp Inc. raised its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. German American Bancorp Inc. now owns 966,872 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,406,000 after purchasing an additional 12,585 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in German American Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,364,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in German American Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $10,440,000. 46.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About German American Bancorp

German American Bancorp, Inc is a financial holding company headquartered in Jasper, Indiana. Through its principal subsidiary, German American Bank, the company provides banking, wealth management, and insurance services to individuals, families, farmers, and businesses.

German American Bank offers deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate loans, agricultural financing, commercial loans, consumer loans, mortgage services, and other traditional banking products. Its wealth management operations provide trust administration, investment management, financial planning, and related services, while its insurance business offers personal and commercial insurance products.

Founded in 1910, German American Bancorp has built a community banking franchise serving southern Indiana and neighboring communities in Kentucky and Ohio.