Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $52.73, but opened at $53.93. Metropolitan Bank shares last traded at $53.78, with a volume of 35,615 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MCB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $73.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Metropolitan Bank from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Hovde Group raised their target price on Metropolitan Bank from $75.00 to $83.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Metropolitan Bank Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $60.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $600.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.03 and a beta of 1.17.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.39. Metropolitan Bank had a net margin of 13.55% and a return on equity of 10.89%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Dale C. Fredston sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $62,270.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,100,186.36. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Scott Lublin sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.77, for a total transaction of $176,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 52,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,070,908.81. The trade was a 5.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Metropolitan Bank

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its holdings in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 46.9% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 504 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in Metropolitan Bank during the 4th quarter worth $66,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 212.7% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 1,354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 921 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the 4th quarter valued at $91,000. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Metropolitan Bank during the 4th quarter valued at $128,000. 79.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Metropolitan Bank

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Metropolitan Commercial Bank that provides a range of business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, public entities, and individuals in the New York metropolitan area.