Norges Bank Purchases New Shares in Community Financial System, Inc. $CBU

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Community Financial System, Inc. (NYSE:CBU) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 678,844 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $38,993,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.29% of Community Financial System at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CBU. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Community Financial System by 132.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 636,257 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,310,000 after acquiring an additional 363,012 shares in the last quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. increased its position in Community Financial System by 740.1% in the 4th quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 401,450 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $23,059,000 after acquiring an additional 353,663 shares in the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Community Financial System in the 2nd quarter valued at about $15,185,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in Community Financial System by 10,989.2% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 200,049 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,491,000 after acquiring an additional 198,245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Community Financial System by 2,430.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 168,892 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,701,000 after acquiring an additional 162,218 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.79% of the company’s stock.

Community Financial System Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:CBU opened at $63.98 on Tuesday. Community Financial System, Inc. has a one year low of $51.12 and a one year high of $67.50. The company has a 50 day moving average of $62.31 and a 200-day moving average of $61.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $3.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 0.78.

Community Financial System (NYSE:CBU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The bank reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.05. Community Financial System had a net margin of 21.26% and a return on equity of 11.24%. The company had revenue of $213.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $216.36 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.98 EPS. Community Financial System’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Community Financial System, Inc. will post 4.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Community Financial System Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Community Financial System’s payout ratio is 45.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CBU has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Community Financial System from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on Community Financial System in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Community Financial System from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Community Financial System in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Community Financial System from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.75.

About Community Financial System

Community Financial System (NYSE: CBU) is the bank holding company for Community Bank, National Association, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in DeWitt, New York. Through its principal subsidiary, the company offers a range of banking and financial services designed to meet the needs of both consumer and business clients. Its organizational structure centers on community-based banking operations supported by centralized technology, risk management and administrative functions.

The company’s product offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial mortgage loans, commercial and consumer lending, treasury and cash management services, and electronic banking.