Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 19,363 Shares of Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) by 4.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 419,070 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 19,363 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Brookline Bancorp were worth $4,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 0.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,145,485 shares of the bank’s stock worth $101,049,000 after buying an additional 54,211 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Brookline Bancorp by 21.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,431,291 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,951,000 after buying an additional 249,113 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,267,888 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,587,000 after purchasing an additional 59,317 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Brookline Bancorp by 5.0% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,181,769 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,868,000 after acquiring an additional 56,291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 642,651 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,484,000 after purchasing an additional 258,267 shares in the last quarter. 78.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Brookline Bancorp from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th.

Brookline Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BRKL opened at $12.26 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.77 and a beta of 0.76. Brookline Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.01 and a 1-year high of $13.15. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.80.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.03. Brookline Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 11.40%. The company had revenue of $165.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $88.67 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Brookline Bancorp, Inc. will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookline Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.135 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.40%. Brookline Bancorp’s payout ratio is 65.06%.

Brookline Bancorp Profile

Brookline Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company’s loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans.