Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $100.53 and last traded at $100.62, with a volume of 11315 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $98.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MCB. UBS Group assumed coverage on Metropolitan Bank in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Metropolitan Bank from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Metropolitan Bank from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Metropolitan Bank from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.00.

Metropolitan Bank Trading Down 2.1%

The firm has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.13 and a beta of 1.00. The business’s fifty day moving average is $91.93 and its 200-day moving average is $87.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.19 by $0.73. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 15.89%.The business had revenue of $88.49 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $87.33 million.

Metropolitan Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Metropolitan Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Metropolitan Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.32%.

Insider Activity at Metropolitan Bank

In other Metropolitan Bank news, EVP Nick Rosenberg sold 1,807 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.42, for a total value of $181,458.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 22,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,229,524.84. This trade represents a 7.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Harvey Gutman sold 3,000 shares of Metropolitan Bank stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.58, for a total transaction of $268,740.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,243 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,634,207.94. This represents a 14.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 19,897 shares of company stock valued at $1,874,352 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Metropolitan Bank

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new position in Metropolitan Bank during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,185,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 8.9% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 324,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,316,000 after buying an additional 26,522 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 53.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 178,363 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,345,000 after buying an additional 62,327 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,597,000. Finally, Patriot Financial Partners GP II L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $57,229,000. 79.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Metropolitan Bank Company Profile

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB), through its principal subsidiary Metropolitan Commercial Bank, operates as a New York–based regional financial institution providing a range of commercial and consumer banking services. The company offers deposit products including checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as business and personal certificates of deposit. On the lending side, Metropolitan Bank extends commercial real estate financing, equipment loans, working capital lines of credit and consumer installment loans tailored to the needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises and individual customers.

In addition to traditional deposit and lending services, Metropolitan Bank provides specialized treasury and cash-management solutions, foreign exchange services and letters of credit for both domestic businesses and multinational clients.