Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday.

Middlefield Banc Price Performance

MBCN stock opened at $29.88 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.46. The company has a market capitalization of $241.13 million, a P/E ratio of 16.98 and a beta of 0.69. Middlefield Banc has a twelve month low of $20.61 and a twelve month high of $37.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.18). Middlefield Banc had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 6.90%. The company had revenue of $16.82 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.10 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Middlefield Banc will post 1.79 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Middlefield Banc

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Middlefield Banc by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 386,196 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,222,000 after acquiring an additional 3,782 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in 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. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Middlefield Banc in the 3rd quarter valued at about $225,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Middlefield Banc by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 165,355 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,763,000 after purchasing an additional 1,368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Middlefield Banc by 69.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,916 shares of the bank’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 6,918 shares during the last quarter. 31.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Middlefield Banc Company Profile

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.