Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) Rating Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Thursday.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sandy Spring Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.50.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Stock Performance

Sandy Spring Bancorp stock opened at $21.49 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.92. Sandy Spring Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $19.27 and a fifty-two week high of $27.90. The stock has a market cap of $967.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 0.94.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. Sandy Spring Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.69% and a net margin of 12.74%. The firm had revenue of $184.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $97.45 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Sandy Spring Bancorp will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sandy Spring Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SASR. North Reef Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Sandy Spring Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,319,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 408.6% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 405,821 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,697,000 after buying an additional 326,036 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $8,423,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 52.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 269,547 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,776,000 after buying an additional 92,175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC raised its stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 62.9% during the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 226,813 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,861,000 after buying an additional 87,576 shares during the last quarter. 66.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.