Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB) gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $60.98, but opened at $63.29. Metropolitan Bank shares last traded at $64.90, with a volume of 17,476 shares.

The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.39. Metropolitan Bank had a return on equity of 10.02% and a net margin of 12.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Hovde Group raised their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $65.50 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $73.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Transactions at Metropolitan Bank

In other Metropolitan Bank news, Director Robert C. Patent sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.32, for a total value of $55,320.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 79,133 shares in the company, valued at $4,377,637.56. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Scott Lublin sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.77, for a total value of $176,310.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 52,253 shares in the company, valued at $3,070,908.81. This represents a 5.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,250 shares of company stock valued at $313,093. Corporate insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Metropolitan Bank

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 176.8% during the third quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 607,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,958,000 after purchasing an additional 388,200 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 31.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 130,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,486,000 after purchasing an additional 31,397 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,991,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Metropolitan Bank by 112.4% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 89,193 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,690,000 after purchasing an additional 47,193 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 44.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 82,922 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,751,000 after acquiring an additional 25,654 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.83% of the company’s stock.

Metropolitan Bank Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $723.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20 and a beta of 1.17. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $62.03 and its 200-day moving average is $55.66.

Metropolitan Bank Company Profile

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Metropolitan Commercial Bank that provides a range of business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, public entities, and individuals in the New York metropolitan area.