James S. Abernethy Sells 500 Shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBK) Stock

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBK) Director James S. Abernethy sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.12, for a total value of $14,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 72,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,046,461.12. This represents a 0.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Price Performance

PEBK traded down $1.34 on Friday, reaching $27.41. The company had a trading volume of 4,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,748. The company has a market capitalization of $149.55 million, a P/E ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a fifty day moving average of $28.15 and a 200-day moving average of $28.41. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. has a one year low of $23.74 and a one year high of $33.31.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina (NASDAQ:PEBK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 12.85%.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a positive change from Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st.

Institutional Trading of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 27.8% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,590 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina in the fourth quarter worth about $82,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina in the 4th quarter valued at about $85,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,366 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina by 35.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,649 shares of the bank’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 43.83% of the company’s stock.

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina Company Profile

Peoples Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Peoples Bank that provides various banking products and services for individuals and small-to medium-sized businesses. It offers checking, savings, money market, and retirement accounts; certificates of deposits; and credit and debit cards.