Short Interest in Meridian Co. (NASDAQ:MRBK) Drops By 20.0%

Meridian Co. (NASDAQ:MRBK) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,800 shares, a drop of 20.0% from the October 15th total of 11,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 13,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on MRBK shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Meridian from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Meridian from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th.

Meridian Stock Up 0.6 %

Meridian stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $14.23. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 24,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,533. Meridian has a 52-week low of $8.26 and a 52-week high of $14.45. The company has a market cap of $159.95 million, a PE ratio of 14.09 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $12.95 and its 200 day moving average is $11.39.

Meridian (NASDAQ:MRBK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.57 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Meridian will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Meridian Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meridian

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

Meridian Company Profile

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.