German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $45.20.

A number of research firms have commented on GABC. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on German American Bancorp from $44.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on German American Bancorp from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th.

German American Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of GABC opened at $38.72 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $37.33 and its 200-day moving average is $39.93. German American Bancorp has a one year low of $31.06 and a one year high of $47.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.73 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. German American Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.04% and a net margin of 23.69%. The company had revenue of $81.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.60 million. Equities analysts anticipate that German American Bancorp will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

German American Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, May 10th were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. German American Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Diane B. Medley acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $39.21 per share, with a total value of $39,210.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,370 shares in the company, valued at $210,557.70. The trade was a 22.88% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jason M. Kelly sold 2,515 shares of German American Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.55, for a total value of $99,468.25. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $461,667.15. This trade represents a 17.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 1,135 shares of company stock worth $44,456 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 6.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On German American Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barclays PLC grew its stake in German American Bancorp by 577.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 69,271 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,684,000 after purchasing an additional 59,048 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in German American Bancorp by 84.4% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 11,747 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 5,377 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in German American Bancorp by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 21,481 shares of the bank’s stock worth $871,000 after buying an additional 3,391 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new stake in German American Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $362,000. Finally, CFC Planning Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of German American Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $761,000. 46.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

German American Bancorp Company Profile

German American Bancorp, Inc operates as a financial holding company for German American Bank that provides retail and commercial banking services. The company operates through three segments: Core Banking, Wealth Management Services, and Insurance Operations. The Core Banking segment accepts deposits from the general public; and originates consumer, commercial and agricultural, commercial and agricultural real estate, and residential mortgage loans, as well as sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market.