Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Sells $85,890.00 in Stock

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:FMAO) Director Andrew Briggs sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.63, for a total transaction of $85,890.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 174,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,997,366.50. This trade represents a 1.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of FMAO stock opened at $28.84 on Friday. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. has a 52 week low of $22.77 and a 52 week high of $29.83. The company has a market capitalization of $397.07 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.05 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $32.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.54 million. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp had a net margin of 18.54% and a return on equity of 9.85%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Inc. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, April 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp’s payout ratio is 35.25%.

Institutional Trading of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FMAO. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 124.6% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co bought a new position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 36.0% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp by 948.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 4,013 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Globeflex Capital L P purchased a new stake in shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $152,000. 23.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FMAO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Hovde Group decreased their price objective on Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from $30.00 to $28.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $28.50 target price (up from $28.00) on shares of Farmers & Merchants Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Farmers & Merchants Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.50.

About Farmers & Merchants Bancorp

Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:FMAO) is the bank holding company for Farmers & Merchants Bank of Central California, a community-focused institution headquartered in Los Banos, California. The bank traces its roots to 1916 and has grown to serve individuals, businesses and agricultural enterprises throughout the western San Joaquin Valley. Operating with a commitment to local decision-making, the company emphasizes personalized service and close ties to the communities in which it operates.

Through its banking subsidiary, Farmers & Merchants offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, online and mobile banking platforms, and merchant services.