Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 2,735 Shares of Community Bank System, Inc. (NYSE:CBU)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund trimmed its holdings in Community Bank System, Inc. (NYSE:CBU) by 8.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 29,381 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,735 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.06% of Community Bank System worth $1,531,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CBU. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in Community Bank System by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 536,844 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,975,000 after purchasing an additional 65,879 shares during the period. Carl P. Sherr & Co. LLC increased its stake in Community Bank System by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Carl P. Sherr & Co. LLC now owns 8,170 shares of the bank’s stock worth $426,000 after buying an additional 2,981 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Community Bank System by 48.5% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,644 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $659,000 after buying an additional 4,129 shares in the last quarter. Lipe & Dalton purchased a new stake in Community Bank System in the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. Finally, Invesco LLC bought a new position in Community Bank System in the 4th quarter worth about $181,000. 73.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Community Bank System Price Performance

NYSE CBU opened at $44.64 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a PE ratio of 14.06 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $45.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.74. Community Bank System, Inc. has a 52-week low of $35.38 and a 52-week high of $55.64.

Community Bank System (NYSE:CBU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $177.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.25 million. Community Bank System had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 8.93%. The firm’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.96 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Community Bank System, Inc. will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Community Bank System Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. Community Bank System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CBU shares. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Community Bank System from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 5th. StockNews.com raised Community Bank System to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Community Bank System in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Community Bank System

In other Community Bank System news, Director Sally A. Steele sold 3,501 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.76, for a total transaction of $170,708.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 33,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,639,993.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Sally A. Steele sold 3,501 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.76, for a total transaction of $170,708.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 33,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,639,993.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dimitar Karaivanov bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $43.70 per share, with a total value of $43,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 16,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $710,780.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Community Bank System Profile

Community Bank System, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Community Bank, N.A. that provides various banking and other financial services to retail, commercial, institutional, and municipal customers. It operates through three segments: Banking, Employee Benefit Services, and All Other. The company offers various deposits products, such as interest and noninterest -bearing checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as time deposits.