Shore Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:SHBI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shore Bancshares Inc (NASDAQ:SHBI) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $20.1667.

SHBI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Shore Bancshares from $18.00 to $18.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 14th. Hovde Group lifted their price target on shares of Shore Bancshares from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Shore Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Shore Bancshares from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Shore Bancshares

In related news, Director William E. Esham III purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $19.99 per share, for a total transaction of $99,950.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,510 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,144.90. The trade was a 980.39% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 8.69% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Shore Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in Shore Bancshares in the second quarter valued at about $8,622,000. Fourthstone LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Shore Bancshares by 61.6% in the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 918,202 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $16,234,000 after buying an additional 350,012 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Shore Bancshares by 168.5% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 495,965 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,769,000 after acquiring an additional 311,266 shares during the period. HoldCo Asset Management LP acquired a new position in Shore Bancshares during the second quarter worth $4,215,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Shore Bancshares by 19.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,065,910 shares of the bank’s stock worth $17,492,000 after acquiring an additional 175,282 shares in the last quarter. 59.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Shore Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of SHBI opened at $19.42 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Shore Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $11.47 and a fifty-two week high of $20.68. The company has a market cap of $649.15 million, a P/E ratio of 10.91 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $18.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.38.

Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $59.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.55 million. Shore Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.62% and a net margin of 17.36%. On average, research analysts forecast that Shore Bancshares will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Shore Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Shore Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.97%.

About Shore Bancshares

Shore Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: SHBI) is the bank holding company for Shore Community Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Mount Holly, New Jersey. The company provides a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals and businesses, including deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage financing, and cash management solutions. Through its branch network, Shore Bancshares focuses on delivering community-oriented banking services with an emphasis on personalized customer relationships.

Shore Community Bank’s lending portfolio includes commercial real estate, construction loans, agricultural loans, small business loans under government-sponsored programs, and conventional residential mortgages.