Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys New Holdings in Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 169,473 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $5,713,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 96.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 70,599 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,215,000 after purchasing an additional 34,735 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 10.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 807,940 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,345,000 after buying an additional 75,596 shares in the last quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 1,296.9% in the fourth quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,572 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $424,000 after buying an additional 11,672 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,072,619 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,654,000 after buying an additional 35,271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Sandy Spring Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $2,989,000. Institutional investors own 66.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in a research note on Monday. They issued a “sell” rating for the company.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Stock Up 2.8 %

NASDAQ SASR opened at $29.62 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.82 and a beta of 0.96. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.52 and a 52 week high of $39.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $32.19 and a 200-day moving average of $33.42.

Sandy Spring Bancorp (NASDAQ:SASR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.01). Sandy Spring Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.31% and a net margin of 2.65%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.48 EPS for the current year.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.59%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. Sandy Spring Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 302.22%.

About Sandy Spring Bancorp

Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.