Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Takes Position in TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 174,876 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $4,907,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned 0.24% of TowneBank as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in TowneBank by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,036,878 shares of the bank’s stock worth $120,140,000 after purchasing an additional 162,347 shares during the period. Nuance Investments LLC raised its holdings in TowneBank by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 2,410,827 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $71,746,000 after acquiring an additional 38,783 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in TowneBank by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 784,137 shares of the bank’s stock worth $23,336,000 after acquiring an additional 31,755 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of TowneBank during the fourth quarter worth approximately $10,851,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of TowneBank by 41.4% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 265,062 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,888,000 after purchasing an additional 77,621 shares during the period. 55.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on TOWN shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on TowneBank from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded TowneBank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.33.

TowneBank Stock Down 0.6 %

TowneBank stock traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $33.31. The stock had a trading volume of 73,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 260,950. The stock has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.67 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.66. TowneBank has a one year low of $21.63 and a one year high of $33.93.

TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.09. TowneBank had a return on equity of 7.61% and a net margin of 15.33%. The company had revenue of $174.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $172.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that TowneBank will post 2.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TowneBank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. TowneBank’s dividend payout ratio is 49.75%.

TowneBank Profile

TowneBank provides retail and commercial banking services for individuals, commercial enterprises, and professionals. The company operates through three segments: Banking, Realty, and Insurance. It accepts various deposits, including demand deposits, savings accounts, money rate savings, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.