Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) Coverage Initiated at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) in a report issued on Wednesday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the bank’s stock.

BRKL has been the subject of several other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $14.50 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th.

Brookline Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BRKL opened at $12.18 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.19. The company has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.82 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Brookline Bancorp has a 52 week low of $8.01 and a 52 week high of $13.15.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The bank reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.01). Brookline Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.94% and a net margin of 10.51%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Brookline Bancorp will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brookline Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.135 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.43%. Brookline Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 70.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookline Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BRKL. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 805.4% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,825 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,513 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Brookline Bancorp by 124.2% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,879 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,595 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Brookline Bancorp by 174.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,154 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 3,279 shares in the last quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. acquired a new position in Brookline Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $72,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Brookline Bancorp by 60.3% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,438 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 2,421 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.91% of the company’s stock.

About Brookline Bancorp

Brookline Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company’s loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans.