Fourthstone LLC Boosts Stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBK)

Fourthstone LLC grew its stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBK) by 203.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,243 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,069 shares during the quarter. Fourthstone LLC’s holdings in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina were worth $1,914,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PEBK. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its holdings in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,590 shares of the bank’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,366 shares of the bank’s stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 390.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,801 shares of the bank’s stock worth $198,000 after acquiring an additional 6,211 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $296,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 23,380 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. 43.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PEBK opened at $25.91 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $27.29 and its 200 day moving average is $28.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.74 and a 1 year high of $33.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.44 million, a P/E ratio of 8.69 and a beta of 0.44.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 12.85%.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. This is a boost from Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Profile

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Bank that provides various banking products and services for individuals and small-to medium-sized businesses. It offers checking, savings, money market, and retirement accounts; certificates of deposits; and credit and debit cards.