Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $64.49 and last traded at $64.49, with a volume of 8380 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MCB shares. Hovde Group lifted their target price on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $65.50 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Metropolitan Bank from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $67.50 price target (up previously from $55.00) on shares of Metropolitan Bank in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Metropolitan Bank Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company's 50 day moving average price is $53.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.05. The stock has a market cap of $720.24 million, a P/E ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 1.12.

Metropolitan Bank (NYSE:MCB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.31. Metropolitan Bank had a net margin of 12.47% and a return on equity of 10.17%. The company had revenue of $71.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $66.70 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Metropolitan Bank

In other news, SVP Norman Scott sold 1,473 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.92, for a total transaction of $85,316.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,732 shares in the company, valued at $679,517.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Metropolitan Bank news, SVP Norman Scott sold 1,473 shares of Metropolitan Bank stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.92, for a total value of $85,316.16. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,732 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $679,517.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert C. Patent sold 1,000 shares of Metropolitan Bank stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.32, for a total transaction of $55,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 79,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,377,637.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,723 shares of company stock worth $209,561 over the last three months. 6.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Metropolitan Bank

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Metropolitan Bank by 4.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 628,996 shares of the company's stock worth $24,216,000 after acquiring an additional 27,499 shares in the last quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 1.4% during the first quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 266,521 shares of the company's stock worth $10,261,000 after purchasing an additional 3,767 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 21.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 186,440 shares of the company's stock worth $7,847,000 after purchasing an additional 32,491 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Metropolitan Bank by 31.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 130,340 shares of the company's stock worth $5,486,000 after purchasing an additional 31,397 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in Metropolitan Bank during the second quarter worth about $4,991,000. 79.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Metropolitan Bank Company Profile

Metropolitan Bank Holding Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Metropolitan Commercial Bank that provides a range of business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to small businesses, middle-market enterprises, public entities, and individuals in the New York metropolitan area.