Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $39.00.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PEBO. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Peoples Bancorp from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Hovde Group upped their price objective on Peoples Bancorp from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Peoples Bancorp in a research report on Friday, May 29th.

Peoples Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PEBO opened at $39.39 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $36.35 and its 200-day moving average is $34.01. The company has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.63 and a beta of 0.62. Peoples Bancorp has a 52-week low of $27.49 and a 52-week high of $40.19.

Peoples Bancorp (NASDAQ:PEBO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $119.33 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $118.72 million. Peoples Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.75% and a net margin of 17.92%. Equities research analysts predict that Peoples Bancorp will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Peoples Bancorp news, Director Dwight Eric Smith acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $34.51 per share, with a total value of $34,510.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $319,424.56. This trade represents a 12.11% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Peoples Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 24,366 shares of the bank’s stock worth $801,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in Peoples Bancorp by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 24,348 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in Peoples Bancorp by 2.5% in the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 16,600 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $508,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Peoples Bancorp by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 35,520 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in Peoples Bancorp by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 15,582 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $468,000 after buying an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.68% of the company’s stock.

About Peoples Bancorp

Peoples Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Marietta, Ohio. Through its subsidiary Peoples Bank, the company provides a comprehensive range of commercial and consumer banking services designed to serve individuals, businesses and institutional clients. Its deposit products include checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit and digital banking platforms that enable secure online and mobile access.

On the lending side, Peoples Bancorp offers commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate financing, construction and agricultural lending, as well as residential mortgage products.