StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL)

Equities researchers at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) in a research report issued on Thursday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $14.50 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $16.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th.

Brookline Bancorp Trading Down 1.9 %

NASDAQ:BRKL opened at $11.66 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.26. Brookline Bancorp has a one year low of $8.01 and a one year high of $13.15. The firm has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.14 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.12.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The bank reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.01). Brookline Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.94% and a net margin of 10.51%. Equities analysts anticipate that Brookline Bancorp will post 1.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookline Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 57,132 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $674,000 after purchasing an additional 811 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in Brookline Bancorp by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 43,073 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $508,000 after buying an additional 1,323 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Brookline Bancorp by 124.2% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,879 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management increased its holdings in Brookline Bancorp by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 15,829 shares of the bank’s stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 1,819 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Brookline Bancorp by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 50,139 shares of the bank’s stock worth $592,000 after buying an additional 1,859 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.91% of the company’s stock.

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.