HomeStreet (NASDAQ:HMST) Raised to “Buy” at Janney Montgomery Scott

HomeStreet (NASDAQ:HMST) was upgraded by equities researchers at Janney Montgomery Scott from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $13.50 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Janney Montgomery Scott’s target price indicates a potential upside of 28.57% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $13.50 target price on shares of HomeStreet in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com began coverage on HomeStreet in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “sell” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.00.

HomeStreet Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HMST opened at $10.50 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $10.42 and its 200-day moving average is $11.89. HomeStreet has a 1-year low of $4.20 and a 1-year high of $15.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.40. The stock has a market cap of $198.03 million, a P/E ratio of -4.93 and a beta of 1.33.

HomeStreet (NASDAQ:HMST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported ($0.29) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $41.61 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.07 million. HomeStreet had a negative return on equity of 0.43% and a negative net margin of 8.97%. Equities research analysts anticipate that HomeStreet will post -0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HomeStreet

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HMST. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in HomeStreet by 27.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 586,929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,045,000 after buying an additional 127,969 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in shares of HomeStreet by 47.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 435,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,389,000 after buying an additional 140,357 shares during the period. Acuitas Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of HomeStreet by 86.0% in the 4th quarter. Acuitas Investments LLC now owns 342,643 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,529,000 after acquiring an additional 158,455 shares in the last quarter. Terrapin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of HomeStreet during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,926,000. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC bought a new position in HomeStreet during the first quarter worth $3,720,000. Institutional investors own 74.71% of the company’s stock.

About HomeStreet

HomeStreet, Inc operates as the bank holding company for HomeStreet Bank that provides commercial, mortgage, and consumer/retail banking services in the Western United States. The company offers personal and business checking, savings, interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; credit cards; insurance; and treasury management services.