Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT) Raised to "Buy" at StockNews.com

Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EBMT traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $15.00. 17,890 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 20,599. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $15.88 and a 200 day moving average of $15.53. Eagle Bancorp Montana has a 1 year low of $12.32 and a 1 year high of $17.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.89 and a beta of 0.53.

Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.15. Eagle Bancorp Montana had a return on equity of 4.96% and a net margin of 7.03%. On average, analysts forecast that Eagle Bancorp Montana will post 1.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eagle Bancorp Montana

In related news, Director Peter Joseph Johnson sold 5,000 shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.97, for a total transaction of $84,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 57,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $981,510.86. This trade represents a 7.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kenneth M. Walsh sold 6,705 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.44, for a total value of $110,230.20. Following the transaction, the director now owns 141,033 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,318,582.52. This represents a 4.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,795 shares of company stock worth $213,610 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 6.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Eagle Bancorp Montana

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EBMT. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Eagle Bancorp Montana by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 23,408 shares of the bank's stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 5.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,838 shares of the bank's stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Eagle Bancorp Montana by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 45,699 shares of the bank's stock worth $701,000 after acquiring an additional 1,699 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 10,567 shares of the bank's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 2,165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 3.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 93,172 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,236,000 after purchasing an additional 2,937 shares during the period. 35.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Company Profile

Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Opportunity Bank of Montana that provides various retail banking products and services to small businesses and individuals in Montana. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit accounts.

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