German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $46.40.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of German American Bancorp from $49.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on German American Bancorp from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Insider Activity at German American Bancorp

In related news, Director Diane B. Medley purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.21 per share, with a total value of $39,210.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,370 shares in the company, valued at $210,557.70. This trade represents a 22.88 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 1,086 shares of company stock valued at $42,621. 6.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On German American Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of German American Bancorp during the third quarter worth $597,000. Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 43.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 133,156 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,160,000 after buying an additional 40,219 shares during the period. German American Bancorp Inc. grew its position in shares of German American Bancorp by 160.1% during the third quarter. German American Bancorp Inc. now owns 514,018 shares of the bank’s stock worth $19,918,000 after buying an additional 316,400 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 3.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 954,536 shares of the bank’s stock worth $36,988,000 after buying an additional 32,816 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in German American Bancorp by 1.1% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 30,922 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,198,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. 46.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

German American Bancorp Price Performance

GABC stock opened at $38.34 on Friday. German American Bancorp has a 52 week low of $31.06 and a 52 week high of $47.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.60 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.09. German American Bancorp had a net margin of 23.69% and a return on equity of 12.04%. Analysts anticipate that German American Bancorp will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

German American Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from German American Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. German American Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 41.13%.

German American Bancorp Company Profile

German American Bancorp, Inc operates as a financial holding company for German American Bank that provides retail and commercial banking services. The company operates through three segments: Core Banking, Wealth Management Services, and Insurance Operations. The Core Banking segment accepts deposits from the general public; and originates consumer, commercial and agricultural, commercial and agricultural real estate, and residential mortgage loans, as well as sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market.