Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Sunday.

Middlefield Banc Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MBCN opened at $28.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.88. The company has a market cap of $231.69 million, a PE ratio of 16.31 and a beta of 0.69. Middlefield Banc has a 12-month low of $20.61 and a 12-month high of $37.00.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $16.82 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.10 million. Middlefield Banc had a return on equity of 6.90% and a net margin of 13.31%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Middlefield Banc will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Middlefield Banc

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 48.9% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,668 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204 shares during the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Middlefield Banc during the 3rd quarter valued at $225,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Middlefield Banc by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 386,196 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,222,000 after purchasing an additional 3,782 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

Middlefield Banc Company Profile

Middlefield Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, small business owners, and retail customers in northeastern and central Ohio. It offers checking, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, time certificates of deposit, commercial loans, real estate loans, various consumer loans, safe deposit facilities, and travelers' checks.