Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $103.10 and last traded at $102.84, with a volume of 60128 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $101.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on PFBC shares. Brean Capital lowered shares of Preferred Bank from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of Preferred Bank in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Preferred Bank from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Preferred Bank from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.00.

Preferred Bank Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.66 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ:PFBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $2.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.05. Preferred Bank had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 17.52%. The business had revenue of $69.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $71.76 million. Analysts anticipate that Preferred Bank will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Preferred Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 7th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 7th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Preferred Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.96%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Preferred Bank

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Preferred Bank by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 494,827 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,727,000 after purchasing an additional 16,348 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC lifted its position in Preferred Bank by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 356,065 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,623,000 after buying an additional 18,309 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Preferred Bank by 15.7% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 337,804 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,534,000 after buying an additional 45,946 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Preferred Bank by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 206,622 shares of the bank’s stock worth $19,511,000 after buying an additional 33,124 shares during the period. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC increased its position in Preferred Bank by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 199,419 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,831,000 after acquiring an additional 33,157 shares during the last quarter. 72.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Preferred Bank

Preferred Bank (NASDAQ: PFBC) is a California-chartered commercial bank headquartered in Los Angeles. The institution offers a full range of banking products and services to businesses and individuals, with a particular emphasis on commercial real estate lending, business banking, treasury management and deposit accounts. Preferred Bank operates through branch offices across Southern California and national loan production offices in major U.S. markets.

The bank’s core lending portfolio focuses on commercial real estate acquisition, development and investment properties.