Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SASR – Get Rating) by 274.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 155,487 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 113,932 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.34% of Sandy Spring Bancorp worth $6,984,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Swiss National Bank raised its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 107,835 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,844,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 9,427 shares of the bank's stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 42,463 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,907,000 after purchasing an additional 5,725 shares in the last quarter. HCR Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth approximately $330,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 584,990 shares of the bank's stock worth $25,945,000 after purchasing an additional 67,013 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.43% of the company's stock.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Stock Down 1.8 %

SASR stock opened at $39.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of 9.05 and a beta of 1.01. Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.84 and a 1-year high of $52.04. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $40.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.01.

Sandy Spring Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 10th were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 9th. Sandy Spring Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 31.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Sandy Spring Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, July 27th.

About Sandy Spring Bancorp

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Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Sandy Spring Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, mortgage, private banking, and trust services to individuals and businesses. It operates through three segments: Community Banking, Insurance, and Investment Management. The Community Banking segment offers financial products and services, including various loan and deposit products.

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