Chartwell Investment Partners LLC Trims Holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR)

Chartwell Investment Partners LLC reduced its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR - Free Report) by 10.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 163,538 shares of the bank's stock after selling 18,295 shares during the period. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC owned 0.36% of Sandy Spring Bancorp worth $5,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SASR. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust purchased a new position in Sandy Spring Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $254,000. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its position in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 55.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 17,487 shares of the bank's stock valued at $549,000 after acquiring an additional 6,224 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 231.1% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,748 shares of the bank's stock valued at $369,000 after buying an additional 8,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,065 shares of the bank's stock worth $818,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. 66.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Price Performance

SASR traded down $0.18 on Tuesday, hitting $38.08. 390,934 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 352,244. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $19.52 and a fifty-two week high of $39.06. The stock has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $32.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.06.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $189.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $101.60 million. Sandy Spring Bancorp had a net margin of 11.54% and a return on equity of 5.74%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. Sandy Spring Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 71.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Sandy Spring Bancorp from $23.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Friday. They set a "sell" rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sandy Spring Bancorp presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.25.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Company Profile

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.