Community Bank System (NYSE:CBU) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Janney Montgomery Scott

Janney Montgomery Scott began coverage on shares of Community Bank System (NYSE:CBU – Get Rating) in a report published on Tuesday, The Fly reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $66.00 price objective on the bank’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on CBU. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Community Bank System in a report on Tuesday, December 20th. They issued a market perform rating for the company. StockNews.com lowered Community Bank System from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $64.50.

Community Bank System Price Performance

Shares of CBU stock opened at $56.55 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of $3.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.34 and a beta of 0.63. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $59.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.81. Community Bank System has a fifty-two week low of $48.99 and a fifty-two week high of $72.86.

Community Bank System (NYSE:CBU – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.01. Community Bank System had a net margin of 26.77% and a return on equity of 11.94%. The business had revenue of $187.69 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $177.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.81 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Community Bank System will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Community Bank System Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 14th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. Community Bank System’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.87%.

Insider Activity

In other Community Bank System news, Director Sally A. Steele bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $53.46 per share, for a total transaction of $106,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,114.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Community Bank System news, Director Brian R. Ace sold 4,148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.54, for a total transaction of $251,119.92. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 63,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,814,685.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sally A. Steele purchased 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $53.46 per share, for a total transaction of $106,920.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $245,114.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Community Bank System

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Community Bank System during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Wipfli Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Community Bank System in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in shares of Community Bank System by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 487 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Community Bank System during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Community Bank System in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 71.78% of the company’s stock.

Community Bank System Company Profile

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Community Bank System, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of retail, business, and municipal banking services. It operates through the following segments: Banking, Employee Benefit Services, and All Other. The Banking segment offers an array of lending and depository-related products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal enterprises.