Algert Global LLC Sells 6,570 Shares of OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC)

Algert Global LLC lessened its holdings in shares of OceanFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:OCFC) by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 41,722 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock after selling 6,570 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in OceanFirst Financial were worth $776,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in OCFC. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in OceanFirst Financial by 4.7% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 41,905 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 1,890 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in OceanFirst Financial by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 25,100 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $467,000 after purchasing an additional 2,800 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC grew its position in OceanFirst Financial by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of OceanFirst Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $192,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of OceanFirst Financial by 28.8% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 63,539 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,181,000 after buying an additional 14,199 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on OCFC shares. Piper Sandler set a $17.00 target price on OceanFirst Financial and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on OceanFirst Financial from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Hovde Group raised their target price on OceanFirst Financial from $19.50 to $21.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, OceanFirst Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Joseph M. Jr. Murphy sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.03, for a total value of $30,045.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 177,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,553,662.51. This trade represents a 0.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.00% of the company’s stock.

OceanFirst Financial Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of OCFC opened at $20.68 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.82 and a beta of 1.01. OceanFirst Financial Corp. has a 1 year low of $13.68 and a 1 year high of $21.87. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.25.

OceanFirst Financial (NASDAQ:OCFC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The savings and loans company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $96.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.79 million. OceanFirst Financial had a net margin of 15.28% and a return on equity of 6.08%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that OceanFirst Financial Corp. will post 1.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

OceanFirst Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. OceanFirst Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 45.71%.

OceanFirst Financial Profile

OceanFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for OceanFirst Bank N.A. that provides community banking services to retail and commercial customers. It accepts money market accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing checking accounts, non-interest-bearing accounts, and time deposits, that includes brokered deposits to retail, government, and business customers.