Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Lowers Holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lowered its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,840 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 667 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp were worth $298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SASR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 96.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 70,599 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,215,000 after acquiring an additional 34,735 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 807,940 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,345,000 after purchasing an additional 75,596 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,072,619 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,654,000 after purchasing an additional 35,271 shares in the last quarter. SPC Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,975,000. Finally, Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. acquired a new stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,906,000. 66.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SASR opened at $34.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion, a PE ratio of 77.38 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $34.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.16. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $19.52 and a 12 month high of $39.55.

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

Sandy Spring Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s payout ratio is 302.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.25.

About Sandy Spring Bancorp

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.