BCB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCBP) Short Interest Up 9.8% in December

BCB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCBP) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 81,900 shares, a growth of 9.8% from the December 15th total of 74,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 43,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days. Currently, 0.6% of the company’s stock are sold short.

BCB Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of BCB Bancorp stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $11.61. The stock had a trading volume of 40,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 47,214. BCB Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $9.19 and a fifty-two week high of $14.04. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $12.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market cap of $197.95 million, a P/E ratio of 9.92 and a beta of 0.61.

BCB Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCBP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The bank reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $51.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.29 million. BCB Bancorp had a net margin of 10.59% and a return on equity of 7.31%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that BCB Bancorp will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on BCB Bancorp from $13.25 to $13.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Insider Transactions at BCB Bancorp

In other news, COO Ryan Blake sold 8,677 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.06, for a total transaction of $113,321.62. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 39,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $514,067.72. This trade represents a 18.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 28.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of BCB Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC increased its position in BCB Bancorp by 105.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,116 shares of the bank’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 2,624 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of BCB Bancorp by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 15,669 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $193,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in BCB Bancorp by 235.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 22,375 shares of the bank’s stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 15,702 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in BCB Bancorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $334,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of BCB Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $356,000. Institutional investors own 36.00% of the company’s stock.

About BCB Bancorp

BCB Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for BCB Community Bank that engages in the provision of banking products and services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company offers insured deposit products, including savings and club accounts, interest and non-interest-bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.