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First Midwest Bancorp Rolls Out Share-Repurchase Program
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First Midwest Bancorp Inc recently announced a share-repurchase program, authorizing repurchase of shares worth up to $180 million. This represents 7.5% of the company’s outstanding shares. The bank intends to execute the repurchase plan over a one-year period.
Notably, First Midwest Bancorp has also been paying quarterly dividends, along with regular hikes. Since 2013, the company has raised its quarterly dividend seven times. The dividend was last hiked in December 2018 by 9.1% to 12 cents per share.
With solid liquidity and balance-sheet position, we believe First Midwest Bancorp will keep rewarding its shareholders in the days ahead.
So, keeping this in mind, is the company worth considering? Let’s dig deeper into its fundamental and financial strengths for a finding an answer to this question.
Revenue Growth: The company witnessed a compound annual growth rate of 35.1% in revenues over a three-year period (2016-2018). Its projected sales growth of 14% for 2019 and 6.7% for 2020 indicates continued improvement in revenues.
Earnings Strength: First Midwest Bancorp recorded 9.5% earnings growth over the last three-five years. This earnings momentum is likely to continue in the near term as well, as reflected by the company’s projected earnings growth rate of 18.6% and 9.5% for 2019 and 2020, respectively.
First Midwest Bancorp’s long-term (three-five years) estimated earnings growth rate of 7% promises rewards for investors, over the long run.
Trades at a Discount: Based on its price-to-book (P/B) and price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, First Midwest Bancorp is trading at a discount to the industry it belongs to. The company’s P/B ratio of 1.15 compares favorably to the industry average of 1.33. Additionally, the P/E ratio of 11.19 is lower than the industry average of 11.59.
Moreover, First Midwest Bancorp has a Value Score of B. The Value Score condenses all valuation metrics into one actionable score that helps investors steer clear of ‘value traps’ and identify stocks that are truly trading at a discount.
Return on Equity: First Midwest Bancorp’s trailing 12-month return on equity (ROE) undercuts its growth potential. The company’s ROE of 8.88% compares unfavorably with ROE of 11.18% for the industry. This underlines the fact that the company is less efficient in using shareholders’ funds.
Leverage: First Midwest Bancorp’s debt/equity ratio is 0.54 versus the industry average of 0.47, indicating a relatively higher debt burden.
Stocks to Consider
Some of the banks worth a look include Civista Bancshares, Inc (CIVB - Free Report) , Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (EFSC - Free Report) and First Business Financial Services, Inc (FBIZ - Free Report) .
Civista Bancshares’ earnings estimate for 2019 has been revised 4.6% north over the past 30 days.
Enterprise Financial’s current-year earnings estimate remained unchanged, in 30 days’ time.
First Business Financial’s earnings estimate for the ongoing year remained unrevised, over the past 30 days.
Zacks' Top 10 Stocks for 2019
In addition to the stocks discussed above, wouldn't you like to know about our 10 finest buy-and-holds for the year?
From more than 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank, these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market. Even during 2018 while the market dropped -5.2%, our Top 10s were up well into double-digits. And during bullish 2012 – 2017, they soared far above the market's +126.3%, reaching +181.9%.
This year, the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility, an AI comer, and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs.
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First Midwest Bancorp Rolls Out Share-Repurchase Program
First Midwest Bancorp Inc recently announced a share-repurchase program, authorizing repurchase of shares worth up to $180 million. This represents 7.5% of the company’s outstanding shares. The bank intends to execute the repurchase plan over a one-year period.
Notably, First Midwest Bancorp has also been paying quarterly dividends, along with regular hikes. Since 2013, the company has raised its quarterly dividend seven times. The dividend was last hiked in December 2018 by 9.1% to 12 cents per share.
With solid liquidity and balance-sheet position, we believe First Midwest Bancorp will keep rewarding its shareholders in the days ahead.
So, keeping this in mind, is the company worth considering? Let’s dig deeper into its fundamental and financial strengths for a finding an answer to this question.
Revenue Growth: The company witnessed a compound annual growth rate of 35.1% in revenues over a three-year period (2016-2018). Its projected sales growth of 14% for 2019 and 6.7% for 2020 indicates continued improvement in revenues.
Earnings Strength: First Midwest Bancorp recorded 9.5% earnings growth over the last three-five years. This earnings momentum is likely to continue in the near term as well, as reflected by the company’s projected earnings growth rate of 18.6% and 9.5% for 2019 and 2020, respectively.
First Midwest Bancorp’s long-term (three-five years) estimated earnings growth rate of 7% promises rewards for investors, over the long run.
Trades at a Discount: Based on its price-to-book (P/B) and price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, First Midwest Bancorp is trading at a discount to the industry it belongs to. The company’s P/B ratio of 1.15 compares favorably to the industry average of 1.33. Additionally, the P/E ratio of 11.19 is lower than the industry average of 11.59.
Moreover, First Midwest Bancorp has a Value Score of B. The Value Score condenses all valuation metrics into one actionable score that helps investors steer clear of ‘value traps’ and identify stocks that are truly trading at a discount.
Return on Equity: First Midwest Bancorp’s trailing 12-month return on equity (ROE) undercuts its growth potential. The company’s ROE of 8.88% compares unfavorably with ROE of 11.18% for the industry. This underlines the fact that the company is less efficient in using shareholders’ funds.
Leverage: First Midwest Bancorp’s debt/equity ratio is 0.54 versus the industry average of 0.47, indicating a relatively higher debt burden.
Stocks to Consider
Some of the banks worth a look include Civista Bancshares, Inc (CIVB - Free Report) , Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (EFSC - Free Report) and First Business Financial Services, Inc (FBIZ - Free Report) .
Civista Bancshares’ earnings estimate for 2019 has been revised 4.6% north over the past 30 days.
Enterprise Financial’s current-year earnings estimate remained unchanged, in 30 days’ time.
First Business Financial’s earnings estimate for the ongoing year remained unrevised, over the past 30 days.
Zacks' Top 10 Stocks for 2019
In addition to the stocks discussed above, wouldn't you like to know about our 10 finest buy-and-holds for the year?
From more than 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank, these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market. Even during 2018 while the market dropped -5.2%, our Top 10s were up well into double-digits. And during bullish 2012 – 2017, they soared far above the market's +126.3%, reaching +181.9%.
This year, the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility, an AI comer, and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs.
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