Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shore Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:SHBI) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $23.58 and last traded at $23.40, with a volume of 177552 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $22.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on SHBI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Shore Bancshares in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Shore Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Shore Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Shore Bancshares from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.00.

Shore Bancshares Stock Up 2.0%

The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $782.96 million, a P/E ratio of 12.45 and a beta of 0.82. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.39.

Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $59.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.35 million. Shore Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.84% and a net margin of 18.20%. As a group, research analysts predict that Shore Bancshares Inc will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Shore Bancshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 3rd. This is a positive change from Shore Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Shore Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.79%.

Shore Bancshares declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 21st that permits the company to buyback $30.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Shore Bancshares

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LSV Asset Management raised its position in shares of Shore Bancshares by 54.5% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 183,777 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,249,000 after purchasing an additional 64,806 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Shore Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,867,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Shore Bancshares by 27.6% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,372 shares of the bank’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 2,675 shares in the last quarter. Anchyra Partners LLC bought a new position in Shore Bancshares during the first quarter valued at approximately $253,000. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Shore Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at $229,000. 59.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Shore Bancshares Company Profile

Shore Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: SHBI) is the bank holding company for Shore Community Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Mount Holly, New Jersey. The company provides a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals and businesses, including deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage financing, and cash management solutions. Through its branch network, Shore Bancshares focuses on delivering community-oriented banking services with an emphasis on personalized customer relationships.

Shore Community Bank’s lending portfolio includes commercial real estate, construction loans, agricultural loans, small business loans under government-sponsored programs, and conventional residential mortgages.