Andrew Briggs Sells 3,000 Shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) Stock

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.38, for a total transaction of $106,140.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 54,550 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,929,979. This trade represents a 5.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ FMAO traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $35.24. 24,699 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 67,061. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.77 and a 12 month high of $35.94. The company has a market capitalization of $485.32 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.24.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.19. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 20.27%.The firm had revenue of $34.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.05 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FMAO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Zacks Research raised Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Hovde Group cut their target price on Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from $30.00 to $28.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $36.00 price target (up from $32.00) on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.25.

Institutional Trading of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rhino Investment Partners Inc acquired a new position in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the first quarter worth $1,765,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in the first quarter valued at $1,319,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 37.0% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 38,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $977,000 after acquiring an additional 10,279 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 226,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,825,000 after acquiring an additional 12,356 shares during the period. Finally, Globeflex Capital L P bought a new position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $181,000. Institutional investors own 23.96% of the company’s stock.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Company Profile

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) is the bank holding company for Farmers & Merchants Bank of Central California, a community-focused institution headquartered in Los Banos, California. The bank traces its roots to 1916 and has grown to serve individuals, businesses and agricultural enterprises throughout the western San Joaquin Valley. Operating with a commitment to local decision-making, the company emphasizes personalized service and close ties to the communities in which it operates.

Through its banking subsidiary, Farmers & Merchants offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, online and mobile banking platforms, and merchant services.