Raymond James Financial Begins Coverage on S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA)

Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) in a report issued on Thursday. The brokerage set a “market perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on STBA. Zacks Research cut shares of S&T Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Hovde Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $54.00 target price (up from $47.00) on shares of S&T Bancorp in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of S&T Bancorp in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on S&T Bancorp from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of S&T Bancorp from $47.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.60.

S&T Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ STBA traded down $0.68 on Thursday, reaching $47.69. 29,185 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 254,405. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. S&T Bancorp has a 12 month low of $34.38 and a 12 month high of $53.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.08. The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of 12.69 and a beta of 0.84.

S&T Bancorp (NASDAQ:STBA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.10. S&T Bancorp had a net margin of 24.51% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The company had revenue of $105.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $104.43 million. As a group, research analysts predict that S&T Bancorp will post 3.95 earnings per share for the current year.

S&T Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at S&T Bancorp

In related news, Director William Hieb sold 11,979 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.34, for a total transaction of $615,001.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $890,440.96. This trade represents a 40.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On S&T Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of S&T Bancorp by 5.0% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in S&T Bancorp by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 6,822 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in S&T Bancorp by 16.4% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in S&T Bancorp by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 12,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $513,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in S&T Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. 65.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About S&T Bancorp

S&T Bancorp, Inc is the bank holding company for S&T Bank, a full-service community bank headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1902, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions.

S&T Bank offers consumer and commercial deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, business loans, personal loans, treasury management and other financial services. Through related businesses and banking divisions, the company also provides wealth management, investment, trust and insurance services.

The company primarily serves communities throughout western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio through a network of banking offices and digital banking channels.