Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Wednesday.

Separately, Hovde Group decreased their target price on Middlefield Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Middlefield Banc Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MBCN opened at $23.84 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.05 and a 200-day moving average of $27.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market cap of $192.65 million, a P/E ratio of 12.42 and a beta of 0.41. Middlefield Banc has a twelve month low of $20.61 and a twelve month high of $34.00.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.14. Middlefield Banc had a return on equity of 7.47% and a net margin of 14.31%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Middlefield Banc will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlefield Banc Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.21 dividend. This is a positive change from Middlefield Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. Middlefield Banc’s payout ratio is 43.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Middlefield Banc

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Middlefield Banc by 104.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,117 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 122.4% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,319 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Middlefield Banc by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 17,265 shares of the bank’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Middlefield Banc by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 102,516 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,952,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Middlefield Banc by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 80,885 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,269,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

About Middlefield Banc

Middlefield Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, small business owners, and retail customers in northeastern and central Ohio. It offers checking, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, time certificates of deposit, commercial loans, real estate loans, various consumer loans, safe deposit facilities, and travelers' checks.