Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) Stock Price Passes Above Fifty Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBK) crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $37.40 and traded as high as $37.98. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina shares last traded at $37.61, with a volume of 17,039 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on PEBK shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen raised Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Stock Down 1.7%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $37.46 and a 200-day moving average of $33.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $203.82 million, a P/E ratio of 10.31 and a beta of 0.31.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina had a return on equity of 13.77% and a net margin of 17.30%.The business had revenue of $24.99 million for the quarter.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This is a positive change from Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s payout ratio is currently 23.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina

In other news, Director James S. Abernethy sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.34, for a total transaction of $38,340.00. Following the sale, the director owned 72,526 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,780,646.84. This trade represents a 1.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,123 shares of company stock worth $81,586. Company insiders own 16.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEBK. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 159,879 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,788,000 after purchasing an additional 2,598 shares in the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 104.4% in the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 154,533 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,594,000 after purchasing an additional 78,921 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 109,442 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,962,000 after purchasing an additional 886 shares in the last quarter. Maltese Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Maltese Capital Management LLC now owns 49,958 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,808,000 after purchasing an additional 612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,009 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $926,000 after buying an additional 2,244 shares in the last quarter. 43.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Company Profile

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Hickory, North Carolina, that operates through its wholly owned subsidiary, Peoples Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of banking and financial services tailored to individuals, small businesses, and municipal clients in the western region of North Carolina.

Through its community banking network, Peoples Bancorp offers deposit products such as checking, savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside consumer and commercial lending solutions.