Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR) Shares Acquired by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR - Free Report) by 45.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,853,807 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 582,309 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 4.11% of Sandy Spring Bancorp worth $62,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 91.4% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 94,058 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,171,000 after acquiring an additional 44,924 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 9,560 shares of the bank's stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Sandy Spring Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,921,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 45.0% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 102,357 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,450,000 after purchasing an additional 31,758 shares during the period. Finally, Chicago Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $843,000. 66.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com started coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "sell" rating on the stock.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Price Performance

SASR stock traded up $0.27 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $27.87. The stock had a trading volume of 2,059,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 335,217. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $19.52 and a twelve month high of $39.55. The company's 50-day moving average price is $31.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.93 and a beta of 0.96.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.01). Sandy Spring Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.31% and a net margin of 2.65%. As a group, research analysts predict that Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. Sandy Spring Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 302.22%.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Company Profile

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.