Meridian Co. (NASDAQ:MRBK) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Meridian Co. (NASDAQ:MRBK) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,800 shares, a decline of 20.0% from the October 15th total of 11,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 13,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days.

Meridian Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MRBK traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $14.23. 24,993 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,702. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.40. Meridian has a fifty-two week low of $8.26 and a fifty-two week high of $14.45. The firm has a market cap of $159.95 million, a PE ratio of 14.09 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Meridian (NASDAQ:MRBK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.07. Meridian had a return on equity of 6.99% and a net margin of 6.00%. The business had revenue of $51.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.57 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Meridian will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Meridian Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be paid a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. Meridian’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRBK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Meridian from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Meridian from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meridian

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Meridian during the 3rd quarter worth $128,000. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Meridian by 10.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 40,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $511,000 after purchasing an additional 3,675 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Meridian by 4.6% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 54,409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,396 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Meridian by 3.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 93,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,183,000 after purchasing an additional 2,838 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Meridian by 6.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 171,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,801,000 after buying an additional 10,514 shares in the last quarter. 58.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Meridian

Meridian Corporation operates as the holding company for Meridian Bank that provides commercial banking products and services in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Florida, and Maryland. The company offers various deposit products, such as demand non-interest bearing, demand interest bearing, savings accounts, money market accounts, and time deposits.