Hovde Group Cuts ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) Price Target to $32.00

ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) had its target price lowered by Hovde Group from $32.50 to $32.00 in a report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on CNOB. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of ConnectOne Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in a research report on Friday, November 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.67.

ConnectOne Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of CNOB opened at $26.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.75 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. ConnectOne Bancorp has a one year low of $20.61 and a one year high of $29.28. The business has a fifty day moving average of $26.78 and a 200 day moving average of $25.33.

ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $114.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.80 million. ConnectOne Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.59% and a net margin of 11.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConnectOne Bancorp will post 2.23 EPS for the current year.

ConnectOne Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. ConnectOne Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.00%.

Institutional Trading of ConnectOne Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CNOB. Algebris UK Ltd. bought a new position in ConnectOne Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth $15,379,000. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in the second quarter valued at about $2,205,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 623.5% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 306,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,095,000 after acquiring an additional 264,016 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 28.6% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 90,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,103,000 after acquiring an additional 20,200 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 275.3% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,079 shares in the last quarter. 67.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting ConnectOne Bancorp

Here are the key news stories impacting ConnectOne Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat on the bottom line: EPS $0.83 vs. $0.74 expected; net interest margin widened and the company reported continued asset growth including a ~$14B asset milestone and solid credit trends — supports earnings momentum. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $32 and keeps an “Outperform” rating — implies roughly 20% upside from current levels and is supportive of the stock. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared: quarterly cash dividend of $0.18 per share (annualized yield ~2.6%), with record/ex-dividend dates announced — supports income-focused investors and reduces downside. Dividend/Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst note with small trim: Hovde Group trimmed its price target to $32.00 from $32.50 but maintained an “Outperform” rating — a modest tweak rather than a bearish call.
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue was essentially flat versus expectations ($114.63M reported vs. ~$114.8M consensus) — underlying business activity appears stable but not clearly accelerating. Earnings Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares are trading down on the session despite the EPS beat — likely reflecting profit-taking and the market digesting mixed signals (earnings beat vs. revenue slight miss and only modest upside from some analysts).

ConnectOne Bancorp Company Profile

ConnectOne Bancorp is a New Jersey‐based bank holding company whose primary subsidiary, ConnectOne Bank, offers a suite of commercial banking services to small and medium‐sized businesses, professionals and individuals. Established in 2005 and headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, the company seeks to deliver customized lending and deposit solutions through a network of branches across northern New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area.

The company’s lending portfolio centers on commercial real estate financing, construction lending, owner‐occupied real estate loans and working capital lines of credit.