OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $20.15 and last traded at $19.87, with a volume of 10093 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.91.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on OCFC. Piper Sandler set a $17.00 price objective on shares of OceanFirst Financial and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Hovde Group boosted their target price on shares of OceanFirst Financial from $19.50 to $21.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.30.

OceanFirst Financial Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $18.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 1.01.

OceanFirst Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. OceanFirst Financial’s payout ratio is currently 45.71%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On OceanFirst Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 22.3% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 75,642 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,241,000 after purchasing an additional 13,813 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its holdings in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 23.8% during the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 27,452 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $450,000 after purchasing an additional 5,274 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 31.9% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 52,792 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $866,000 after purchasing an additional 12,754 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 59,216.3% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 51,012 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $837,000 after purchasing an additional 50,926 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Addison Capital Co lifted its position in OceanFirst Financial by 33.1% during the first quarter. Addison Capital Co now owns 153,824 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $2,524,000 after buying an additional 38,218 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

OceanFirst Financial Company Profile

OceanFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. that provides community banking services to retail and commercial customers. It accepts money market accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, non-interest-bearing accounts, and time deposits, that includes brokered deposits to retail, government, and business customers.