SG Americas Securities LLC Purchases 7,600 Shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR)

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR) by 140.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,004 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 7,600 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp were worth $438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 93.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,271,498 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,235,000 after acquiring an additional 615,591 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,072,619 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,654,000 after purchasing an additional 35,271 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,025,227 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,161,000 after purchasing an additional 120,793 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 17.4% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 819,475 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,707,000 after purchasing an additional 121,574 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 10.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 807,940 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,345,000 after buying an additional 75,596 shares during the period. 66.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a report on Monday, January 27th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sandy Spring Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.25.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SASR opened at $33.83 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $34.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.96. The stock has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.18 and a beta of 0.98. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $19.52 and a 1-year high of $39.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.01). Sandy Spring Bancorp had a net margin of 2.65% and a return on equity of 5.31%. Research analysts anticipate that Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.02%. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s payout ratio is 302.22%.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Profile

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.