While "the trend is your friend" when it comes to short-term investing or trading, timing entries into the trend is a key determinant of success. And increasing the odds of success by making sure the sustainability of a trend isn't easy. The trend often reverses before exiting the trade, leading to a short-term capital loss for investors. So, for a profitable trade, one should confirm factors such as sound fundamentals, positive earnings estimate revisions, etc. that could keep the momentum in the stock ali ...

Ponce Financial (PDLB) appears an attractive pick given a noticeable improvement in the company's earnings outlook. The stock has been a strong performer lately, and the momentum might continue with analysts still raising their earnings estimates for the company. The rising trend in estimate revisions, which is a result of growing analyst optimism on the earnings prospects of this holding company of Ponce Bank, should get reflected in its stock price. After all, empirical research shows a strong correlation ...

Core Viewpoint - Ponce Financial Group, Inc. announced the approval of its Ponce Bank Westchester Avenue Branch as a Banking Development District, aimed at enhancing access to banking services in underserved areas of the Bronx [1][2]. Group 1: Banking Development District (BDD) Program - The New York State BDD Program, managed by the Department of Financial Services, promotes the establishment of bank branches in areas with a demonstrated need for banking services, relying on community support [2][3]. - Ponce Bank's Westchester Avenue branch received $35 million in total program deposits as part of its BDD designation and is seeking an additional $20 million from the New York City Banking Commission [3]. Group 2: Community Impact and Services - The BDD designation will enable Ponce Bank to expand access to affordable financial services, targeting local residents and small businesses with competitive financial products [4]. - Ponce Bank plans to provide financial education to foster financial empowerment and inclusion within the community [4]. Group 3: Company Overview - Ponce Financial Group, Inc. serves as the holding company for Ponce Bank, which is recognized as a Minority Depository Institution and a Community Development Financial Institution [5]. - Ponce Bank's operations primarily involve accepting deposits and investing in various types of loans, including mortgage loans and business loans, as well as securities [5].

Core Viewpoint - Ponce Financial Group, Inc. announced the approval of its Ponce Bank Westchester Avenue Branch as a Banking Development District (BDD), aimed at enhancing access to banking services in underserved areas of the Bronx [1][2]. Group 1: BDD Program Overview - New York State's BDD Program, managed by the Department of Financial Services, promotes the establishment of bank branches in areas with a demonstrated need for banking services, relying on community support [2]. - Approved BDD branches, like Ponce Bank's, gain access to subsidized and market rate deposits from New York State, with Ponce Bank receiving $35 million in total program deposits as of July 30, 2024 [3]. Group 2: Community Impact and Services - Ponce Bank plans to leverage the BDD designation to expand access to affordable financial services, targeting local residents and small businesses with competitive financial products [4]. - The bank will also focus on providing financial education to foster financial empowerment and inclusion within the community [4]. Group 3: Company Profile - Ponce Financial Group, Inc. serves as the holding company for Ponce Bank, which is recognized as a Minority Depository Institution and a Community Development Financial Institution [5]. - Ponce Bank's operations primarily involve accepting deposits and investing in various types of loans, including mortgage loans and business loans, as well as securities [5].

While "the trend is your friend" when it comes to short-term investing or trading, timing entries into the trend is a key determinant of success. And increasing the odds of success by making sure the sustainability of a trend isn't easy. Often, the direction of a stock's price movement reverses quickly after taking a position in it, making investors incur a short-term capital loss. So, it's important to ensure that there are enough factors -- such as sound fundamentals, positive earnings estimate revisions, ...

Ponce Financial (PDLB) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.14 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.01 per share. This compares to break-even earnings per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 1,300%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this holding company of Ponce Bank would post a loss of $0.03 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.11, delivering a surprise of 466.67%. Over the last fo ...

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Financial Performance - Net income available to common stockholders for Q2 2024 was $3.1 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, compared to $2.4 million in Q1 2024 and a net loss of $0.1 million in Q2 2023 [1] - Net interest income for Q2 2024 decreased by $0.9 million (4.88%) to $17.9 million compared to Q1 2024, but increased by $1.6 million (9.96%) compared to Q2 2023 [6] - Non-interest income for Q2 2024 was $2.3 million, a 32.28% increase from Q1 2024 and a 51.34% increase from Q2 2023 [35] - Non-interest expense for Q2 2024 decreased by $0.8 million (4.74%) to $16.1 million compared to Q1 2024 and decreased by $0.9 million (5.51%) compared to Q2 2023 [36] Balance Sheet and Asset Quality - Total assets increased by $91.3 million (3.32%) to $2.84 billion as of June 30, 2024, driven by a $126.3 million increase in net loans receivable [53] - Net loans receivable grew by $126.3 million (6.66%) to $2.02 billion as of June 30, 2024 compared to December 31, 2023 [30] - Deposits increased by $98.5 million (6.53%) to $1.61 billion as of June 30, 2024 compared to December 31, 2023 [30] - Non-performing loans as a percentage of total gross loans stood at 0.89% as of June 30, 2024, down from 0.98% in June 2023 [49] Capital and Liquidity - Total capital to risk-weighted assets (Bank only) was 22.47% as of June 30, 2024, well above regulatory requirements [32] - Liquid assets plus borrowing capacity at FHLBNY stood at $679.9 million, approximately 1.7 times uninsured deposits of $401.7 million [48] - Book value per common share increased to $11.45 as of June 30, 2024, up $0.51 from the previous year [48] Loan Portfolio - Total loans, gross increased to $2.05 billion as of June 30, 2024, with construction and land loans making up 31.39% of the portfolio [23] - Mortgage loans accounted for 98.26% of total loans, with multifamily residential loans representing 26.66% of the portfolio [23] - Business loans increased to $30.2 million (1.48% of total loans) as of June 30, 2024, up from $19.8 million in December 2023 [23] Interest Rate Environment - Net interest margin was 2.62% for Q2 2024, down from 2.71% in Q1 2024 and 2.65% in Q2 2023 [6] - Net interest rate spread was 1.72% for Q2 2024, compared to 1.82% in Q1 2024 and 1.75% in Q2 2023 [48] - Average yield on interest-earning assets increased to 5.69% in Q2 2024 from 5.06% in Q2 2023 [70]

Group 1 - Ponce Financial (PDLB) is identified as a strong candidate for trend investors due to its recent performance and fundamental strength [2][10] - The stock has shown a price increase of 10% over the past four weeks, indicating that the upward trend is still intact [3] - PDLB currently holds a Zacks Rank 1 (Strong Buy), placing it in the top 5% of over 4,000 ranked stocks based on earnings estimate revisions and EPS surprises [4][12] Group 2 - The Average Broker Recommendation for PDLB is also 1 (Strong Buy), reflecting high optimism from the brokerage community regarding its near-term price performance [5] - PDLB has gained 16.1% over the past 12 weeks, demonstrating continued investor interest and willingness to pay more for its potential upside [10] - The stock is trading at 86.5% of its 52-week High-Low Range, suggesting it may be on the verge of a breakout [11]

The Bank achieved this milestone during the first official reporting period of the program with $717.73 million in Qualified Lending and of which $445.08 million were also Deep Impact Lending. Under ECIP, Deep Impact Lending is given double credit, bringing the amount to $890.15 million, and total "qualified lending" as measured pursuant to the ECIP to $1.162 billion. The ECIP program was created to encourage low- and moderate-income community financial institutions to augment their efforts to support the s ...