Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a neutral rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Stephens reaffirmed an equal weight rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $23.50.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SASR opened at $21.49 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $967.05 million, a P/E ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50-day moving average is $21.57 and its 200 day moving average is $22.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Sandy Spring Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $19.27 and a fifty-two week high of $27.90.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.03. Sandy Spring Bancorp had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 6.69%. The business had revenue of $184.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $97.45 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sandy Spring Bancorp will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.33%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sandy Spring Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SteelPeak Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 22.9% in the first quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 9,845 shares of the bank’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 1,836 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,450 shares of the bank’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 2,464 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Sandy Spring Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $220,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 50,876 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,386,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 313,534 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,541,000 after buying an additional 43,987 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.90% of the company’s stock.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Company Profile

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.