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 to investors on Friday.

Middlefield Banc Stock Down 9.8 %

NASDAQ:MBCN opened at $27.51 on Friday. Middlefield Banc has a 1-year low of $20.61 and a 1-year high of $37.00. The company has a 50-day moving average of $27.32 and a 200 day moving average of $24.49. The firm has a market cap of $221.92 million, a PE ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $27.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.80 million. Middlefield Banc had a net margin of 15.06% and a return on equity of 7.74%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Middlefield Banc will post 1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Middlefield Banc

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MBCN. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Middlefield Banc during the fourth quarter valued at about $273,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 14.2% in the 1st quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 32,017 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $765,000 after purchasing an additional 3,989 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 1.0% in 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 last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Middlefield Banc by 48.9% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,668 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,204 shares during the last quarter. 31.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Middlefield Banc

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.