Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs Sells 3,000 Shares

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.86, for a total value of $104,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 87,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,051,993. This represents a 3.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FMAO opened at $33.36 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $459.37 million, a PE ratio of 11.46 and a beta of 0.81. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $22.77 and a fifty-two week high of $35.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.66.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $34.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.05 million. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp had a net margin of 20.27% and a return on equity of 10.72%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 31.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective (up from $32.00) on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings raised Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Hovde Group dropped their target price on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from $30.00 to $28.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rhino Investment Partners Inc acquired a new position in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in the first quarter valued at $1,765,000. Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $204,000. Globeflex Capital L P purchased a new stake in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $152,000. Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $207,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 23.96% of the company’s stock.

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.