Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on WNEB. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Western New England Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Western New England Bancorp in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Western New England Bancorp from $15.00 to $15.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.50.

Western New England Bancorp Stock Up 0.7%

WNEB stock opened at $13.77 on Friday. Western New England Bancorp has a 52 week low of $10.78 and a 52 week high of $15.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $276.09 million, a P/E ratio of 16.39 and a beta of 0.77.

Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.06). Western New England Bancorp had a net margin of 12.43% and a return on equity of 6.78%. The company had revenue of $27.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.74 million. Equities analysts forecast that Western New England Bancorp will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western New England Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th were paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 12th. Western New England Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Philip Smith sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.88, for a total transaction of $45,804.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,800 shares in the company, valued at $80,504. The trade was a 36.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.56% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western New England Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WNEB. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Western New England Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 265.5% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 3,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 2,607 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Western New England Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,003 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 2,446 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 8,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 726 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.95% of the company’s stock.

About Western New England Bancorp

Western New England Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Westfield, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Westfield Bank, the company provides a full suite of commercial and consumer banking services. Its operations focus on serving small to mid-sized businesses, professional practices, and individual customers, with a strategy centered on relationship-driven banking and community involvement.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, along with business cash-management solutions.