Norges Bank Takes $3.77 Million Position in Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BHLB)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BHLB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 132,574 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $3,769,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.31% of Berkshire Hills Bancorp as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHLB. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 282.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 57.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,869 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051 shares in the last quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC bought a new stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $204,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $256,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 13,241 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $376,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Berkshire Hills Bancorp news, EVP Ellen Tulchiner sold 1,052 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.97, for a total transaction of $31,528.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company's stock.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of BHLB traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $23.45. The stock had a trading volume of 25,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 353,324. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 16.28 and a beta of 0.58. Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. has a one year low of $20.50 and a one year high of $32.36.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp (NYSE:BHLB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.06. Berkshire Hills Bancorp had a net margin of 8.56% and a return on equity of 8.91%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.52 EPS for the current year.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. Berkshire Hills Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on BHLB. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $31.00 target price on shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Berkshire Hills Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.50 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Berkshire Hills Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $31.13.

About Berkshire Hills Bancorp

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Berkshire Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company provides various deposit accounts, including demand deposit, interest-bearing checking, regular savings, money market savings, time certificates of deposit, and retirement deposit accounts.