Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) Upgraded at Raymond James

Raymond James upgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) from a market perform rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. Raymond James currently has $16.00 target price on the bank’s stock.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $14.50 in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.17.

Brookline Bancorp Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of BRKL stock opened at $11.94 on Friday. Brookline Bancorp has a 52-week low of $8.01 and a 52-week high of $13.15. The stock has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 0.78. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $11.91 and its 200-day moving average is $10.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $165.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.67 million. Brookline Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 11.40%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Brookline Bancorp will post 0.82 EPS for the current year.

Brookline Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.135 per share. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Brookline Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brookline Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in Brookline Bancorp by 174.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,154 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 3,279 shares during the period. Creative Planning bought a new stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $103,000. Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $111,000. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Brookline Bancorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $117,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Brookline Bancorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $118,000. 78.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Brookline Bancorp

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.