German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) Shares Bought by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) by 13.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,708,130 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 196,003 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 5.76% of German American Bancorp worth $67,557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in German American Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $99,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of German American Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $207,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,220 shares of the bank’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of German American Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $247,000. Finally, Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of German American Bancorp by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,291 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. 46.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

German American Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GABC opened at $44.48 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.06 and a beta of 0.63. German American Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.26 and a 52 week high of $47.08.

German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. German American Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.94% and a net margin of 23.75%. The business had revenue of $62.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.80 million. On average, equities analysts predict that German American Bancorp, Inc. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

German American Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, November 10th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. German American Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Hovde Group raised shares of German American Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $41.00 to $48.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Stephens started coverage on shares of German American Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $45.00 price target for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on German American Bancorp from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.40.

German American Bancorp Company Profile

German American Bancorp, Inc operates as a financial holding company for German American Bank that provides retail and commercial banking services. The company operates through three segments: Core Banking, Wealth Management Services, and Insurance Operations. The Core Banking segment accepts deposits from the general public; and originates consumer, commercial and agricultural, commercial and agricultural real estate, and residential mortgage loans, as well as sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market.