New York State Common Retirement Fund Raises Stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR)

New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR) by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 77,067 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 7,823 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.17% of Sandy Spring Bancorp worth $2,099,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $94,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $115,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 37.8% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,508 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,608 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $209,000. Finally, Lincoln National Corp increased its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 9,827 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 933 shares during the period. 66.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SASR opened at $22.32 on Thursday. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.27 and a 52 week high of $27.90. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $21.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.00. The company has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.94 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. Sandy Spring Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 12.74%. The firm had revenue of $184.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $97.45 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.16 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.09%. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott began coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.50.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Profile

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.