Civista Bancshares (NASDAQ:CIVB) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Civista Bancshares (NASDAQ:CIVB - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $24.00 price objective on shares of Civista Bancshares in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Civista Bancshares from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Hovde Group raised Civista Bancshares from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $22.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.40.

Civista Bancshares Stock Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ CIVB traded down $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $20.65. 45,311 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 45,510. The company has a market cap of $325.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.22 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Civista Bancshares has a 1-year low of $13.60 and a 1-year high of $23.69.

Civista Bancshares (NASDAQ:CIVB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.10. Civista Bancshares had a return on equity of 8.35% and a net margin of 12.96%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Civista Bancshares will post 2.28 EPS for the current year.

Civista Bancshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. This is an increase from Civista Bancshares's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. Civista Bancshares's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Civista Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its holdings in shares of Civista Bancshares by 103.9% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 5,120 shares of the bank's stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 2,609 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of Civista Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $282,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Civista Bancshares by 166.8% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 92,687 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,950,000 after purchasing an additional 57,950 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Civista Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $1,059,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Civista Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $263,000. 52.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Civista Bancshares

Civista Bancshares, Inc operates as the financial holding company for Civista Bank that provides community banking services. It collects a range of customer deposits; and offers commercial and agriculture, commercial and residential real estate, farm real estate, real estate construction, consumer, and other loans, as well as letters of credit.