AlphaQuest LLC Sells 6,482 Shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BHLB)

AlphaQuest LLC cut its holdings in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BHLB) by 25.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,112 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 6,482 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Berkshire Hills Bancorp were worth $543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 282.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 57.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,869 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 1,051 shares during the last quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC purchased a new stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $204,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $215,000. 83.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn raised Berkshire Hills Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler raised Berkshire Hills Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Berkshire Hills Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Berkshire Hills Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.13.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Stock Up 0.6 %

BHLB stock opened at $26.04 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 18.08 and a beta of 0.85. Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $20.50 and a twelve month high of $32.36. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.35.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp (NYSE:BHLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.06. Berkshire Hills Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.91% and a net margin of 8.56%. On average, equities analysts predict that Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Berkshire Hills Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ellen Tulchiner sold 1,052 shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.97, for a total transaction of $31,528.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

About Berkshire Hills Bancorp

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Berkshire Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company provides various deposit accounts, including demand deposit, interest-bearing checking, regular savings, money market savings, time certificates of deposit, and retirement deposit accounts.