OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on OCFC. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $23.00 price target (up previously from $21.00) on shares of OceanFirst Financial in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of OceanFirst Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of OceanFirst Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $22.00 in a report on Friday, October 10th. DA Davidson upgraded shares of OceanFirst Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of OceanFirst Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.60.

OceanFirst Financial Stock Performance

OCFC opened at $19.76 on Friday. OceanFirst Financial has a 12-month low of $14.29 and a 12-month high of $20.61. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.32 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company’s 50 day moving average is $18.92 and its 200 day moving average is $18.18.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 14th. The savings and loans company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter. OceanFirst Financial had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 5.02%. The business had revenue of $93.08 million for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts predict that OceanFirst Financial will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of OceanFirst Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of OCFC. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 7.0% during the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 10,285 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $181,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in OceanFirst Financial by 2.9% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 26,272 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management grew its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 9,952 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $175,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,343 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 811 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in OceanFirst Financial by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,548 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

About OceanFirst Financial

OceanFirst Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: OCFC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Toms River, New Jersey, that provides a full range of community banking and financial services through its principal subsidiary, OceanFirst Bank. Established in the early 20th century, the company has built its business around serving the deposit, lending and wealth management needs of individuals, small businesses, municipalities and nonprofit organizations across New Jersey and portions of New York.

The company’s core activities include accepting consumer and business deposits, making commercial, municipal and consumer loans, and offering residential mortgage financing.