StockNews.com Downgrades Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB) to Sell

Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Prosperity Bancshares from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Prosperity Bancshares from $102.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Barclays raised their price target on Prosperity Bancshares from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of Prosperity Bancshares in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on shares of Prosperity Bancshares from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.50.

Prosperity Bancshares Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE PB opened at $70.51 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $76.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $76.17. The firm has a market cap of $6.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.94. Prosperity Bancshares has a twelve month low of $57.16 and a twelve month high of $86.76.

Prosperity Bancshares (NYSE:PB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.04. Prosperity Bancshares had a net margin of 26.79% and a return on equity of 6.64%. Research analysts expect that Prosperity Bancshares will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ned S. Holmes sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total transaction of $38,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 110,315 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,388,352.60. This trade represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,500 shares of company stock valued at $418,095. 4.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Prosperity Bancshares by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,801 shares of the bank’s stock worth $512,000 after acquiring an additional 608 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP bought a new position in Prosperity Bancshares in the fourth quarter worth about $242,000. GTS Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prosperity Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at about $303,000. iSAM Funds UK Ltd lifted its position in shares of Prosperity Bancshares by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd now owns 13,540 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,020,000 after buying an additional 1,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in shares of Prosperity Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,473,000. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company’s stock.

Prosperity Bancshares Company Profile

Prosperity Bancshares, Inc operates as bank holding company for the Prosperity Bank that provides financial products and services to businesses and consumers. It accepts various deposit products, such as demand, savings, money market, and time accounts, as well as and certificates of deposit. The company also offers 1-4 family residential mortgage, commercial real estate and multifamily residential, commercial and industrial, agricultural, and non-real estate agricultural loans, as well as construction, land development, and other land loans; consumer loans, including automobile, recreational vehicle, boat, home improvement, personal, and deposit account collateralized loans; term loans and lines of credit; and consumer durables and home equity loans, as well as loans for working capital, business expansion, and purchase of equipment and machinery.