German American Bancorp rises after Piper Sandler upgrades to 'overweight'

Community lender German American Bancorp's GABC.O shares rise 2% to $40.67

Piper Sandler upgrades GABC to "overweight" from "neutral" based on discounted valuation; maintains $47 PT, implying an 18% upside to stock's last close

Brokerage says GABC's well-above average profitability outlook has upside potential given number of company-specific catalysts such as fixed-rate asset repricing, strong loan pipelines, and robust core fee income growth

"Excess capital growth will likely provide GABC with added flexibility to pursue additional well-received M&A," says Piper Sandler

4 of 6 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher and 2 "hold"; median PT $46.50 - data compiled by LSEG

As of last close, GABC stock up 1.6% YTD