TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) Stake Increased by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 88,252 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,216 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in TowneBank were worth $3,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new stake in TowneBank during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of TowneBank during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in TowneBank by 258.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,434 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in TowneBank by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,858 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $131,000 after buying an additional 848 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in TowneBank by 137.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,882 shares of the bank’s stock worth $161,000 after buying an additional 2,829 shares in the last quarter. 55.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

TowneBank Stock Up 1.1 %

TOWN stock opened at $31.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $34.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.65. TowneBank has a 12 month low of $25.70 and a 12 month high of $38.28. The company has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.79.

TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.07. TowneBank had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 7.77%. On average, research analysts expect that TowneBank will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TowneBank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. TowneBank’s dividend payout ratio is 46.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on TOWN shares. Hovde Group upgraded shares of TowneBank from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $39.00 to $38.00 in a report on Friday, April 4th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $41.00 target price on shares of TowneBank in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd.

TowneBank Company Profile

TowneBank provides retail and commercial banking services for individuals, commercial enterprises, and professionals. The company operates through three segments: Banking, Realty, and Insurance. It accepts various deposits, including demand deposits, savings accounts, money rate savings, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.