BUZZ-Amalgamated Financial falls after Piper Sandler cuts to 'neutral'

Shares of Amalgamated Financial AMAL.O, a lender popular among Democrats, fall 4.3% to $33.78 premarket

Piper Sandler downgrades AMAL to "neutral" from "overweight"; cuts PT to $38 from $42, which is still a 7.7% upside to stock's last close

Brokerage says it is somewhat concerned about the implications of the so-called green freeze on AMAL given its oversized exposure to climate-related loans

Trump administration recently announced plans to freeze funding for environment and climate change initiatives, with attempts to even claw back previously issued grants

Piper Sandler says that while there is no way of knowing how this will ultimately play out, it thinks AMAL shares should trade at a discount to reflect some uncertainty

Brokerage also wonders if the Trump administration could prompt its newly appointed banking regulators to "more intensely scrutinize the institution that banks their competitors"

One of two brokerages rate the stock "buy" and one "hold"; their median PT is $41.50, according to data compiled by LSEG

AMAL stock up 5.4% YTD