ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) Director Sells $1,000,050.00 in Stock

ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB) Director Michael Kempner sold 67,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.75, for a total transaction of $1,000,050.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 214,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,161,957.50. This trade represents a 24.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

ConnectOne Bancorp Stock Up 0.9%

NASDAQ:CNOB traded up $0.23 on Thursday, hitting $25.78. The stock had a trading volume of 221,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 300,290. ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.61 and a 1 year high of $29.28. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.97. The stock has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.13 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.09. ConnectOne Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 11.83%.The company had revenue of $114.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.80 million. Analysts predict that ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current year.

ConnectOne Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. ConnectOne Bancorp’s payout ratio is 48.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CNOB shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on ConnectOne Bancorp from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on ConnectOne Bancorp in a research report on Monday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Hovde Group decreased their price objective on ConnectOne Bancorp from $32.50 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ConnectOne Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ConnectOne Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in ConnectOne Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $236,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 212,496 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,572,000 after purchasing an additional 15,771 shares in the last quarter. VARCOV Co. bought a new position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $422,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in ConnectOne Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $534,000. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 336,710 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,829,000 after acquiring an additional 15,771 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.70% of the company’s stock.

About ConnectOne Bancorp

ConnectOne Bancorp is a New Jersey‐based bank holding company whose primary subsidiary, ConnectOne Bank, offers a suite of commercial banking services to small and medium‐sized businesses, professionals and individuals. Established in 2005 and headquartered in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, the company seeks to deliver customized lending and deposit solutions through a network of branches across northern New Jersey and the New York metropolitan area.

The company’s lending portfolio centers on commercial real estate financing, construction lending, owner‐occupied real estate loans and working capital lines of credit.