Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN) Stock Price Breaks Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

by · The Markets Daily

Shares of Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN – Get Free Report) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $35.97 and traded as low as $35.69. Towne Bank shares last traded at $36.74, with a volume of 631,590 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on TOWN shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Towne Bank from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Zacks Research raised 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $39.50.

Read Our Latest Research Report on Towne Bank

Towne Bank Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.28 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.97.

Towne Bank (NASDAQ:TOWN – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01). Towne Bank had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 9.60%. The company had revenue of $245.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $245.33 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Towne Bank will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

Towne Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 25th were given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 25th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Towne Bank’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.46%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Towne Bank

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TOWN. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Towne Bank during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Towne Bank by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 990 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the period. Nykredit A S acquired a new stake in Towne Bank during the 2nd quarter worth $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp acquired a new stake in Towne Bank during the 1st quarter worth $68,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Towne Bank by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,856 shares of the bank’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the last quarter. 55.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Towne Bank

(Get Free Report)

TowneBank is a financial services company headquartered in coastal Virginia. Founded in 1999, the company operates as a community-focused banking organization serving individuals, families and businesses in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.

Through its banking operations, TowneBank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgages, cash-management services, online and mobile banking, and other traditional financial products. Its business banking services support companies with commercial real estate financing, business loans, treasury management and related banking needs.

Beyond traditional banking, TowneBank provides services through affiliated businesses in areas that include mortgage lending, insurance, wealth management, real estate brokerage and property management.

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