Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Sells $85,170.00 in Stock

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.39, for a total value of $85,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 186,550 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,296,154.50. This trade represents a 1.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Stock Performance

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp stock opened at $28.80 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $27.26 and its 200-day moving average is $26.46. The company has a market cap of $396.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.03 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.77 and a 12 month high of $29.83.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 18.54%.The company had revenue of $32.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.54 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Farmers & Merchants Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FMAO. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 124.6% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co acquired a new stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 36.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 948.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 4,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Globeflex Capital L P acquired a new stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $152,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 23.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FMAO. Hovde Group lowered their target price on Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from $30.00 to $28.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings lowered Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $28.50 target price (up from $28.00) on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.50.

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.