Shore Bancshares (NASDAQ:SHBI) Hits New 12-Month High After Insider Buying Activity

Shore Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SHBI) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday following insider buying activity. The company traded as high as $16.94 and last traded at $16.94, with a volume of 1278 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $16.55.

Specifically, Director Konrad Wayson purchased 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $16.94 per share, for a total transaction of $50,820.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 53,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $902,326.04. This trade represents a 5.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded Shore Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th.

Shore Bancshares Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $549.28 million, a P/E ratio of 13.18 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s fifty day moving average is $14.71 and its 200 day moving average is $13.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Shore Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. Shore Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.40%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Shore Bancshares

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Shore Bancshares during the second quarter valued at $147,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Shore Bancshares in the 3rd quarter worth about $156,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Shore Bancshares during the 1st quarter worth about $200,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Shore Bancshares by 6.5% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 43,240 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $495,000 after buying an additional 2,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of Shore Bancshares by 30.6% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 37,674 shares of the bank’s stock worth $527,000 after buying an additional 8,831 shares during the period. 59.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Shore Bancshares

Shore Bancshares, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Shore United Bank, N.A. that provides various commercial and consumer banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and other organizations. It offers checking, savings, overnight investment sweep, and money market accounts; and regular and IRA certificates of deposit, as well as CDARS programs and cash management services.