Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Buys 75,596 Shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR - Free Report) by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 807,940 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 75,596 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 1.79% of Sandy Spring Bancorp worth $25,345,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 69.1% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 148,921 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,628,000 after buying an additional 60,850 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 432.5% in the 2nd quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 192,533 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,690,000 after acquiring an additional 156,377 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 473,241 shares of the bank's stock valued at $11,528,000 after acquiring an additional 25,546 shares during the period. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $4,778,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 1,199.7% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 694,867 shares of the bank's stock valued at $16,927,000 after purchasing an additional 641,402 shares in the last quarter. 66.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com started coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research note on Sunday. They set a "sell" rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sandy Spring Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $28.25.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Stock Down 2.2 %

NASDAQ SASR traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $37.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 204,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 348,319. The company has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of 19.93 and a beta of 0.94. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $33.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.19. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.52 and a 52 week high of $39.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.06). Sandy Spring Bancorp had a net margin of 11.54% and a return on equity of 5.71%. The firm had revenue of $189.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $101.60 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.62 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. Sandy Spring Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 71.58%.

About Sandy Spring Bancorp

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.