Hanmi Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HAFC) Short Interest Up 8.7% in December

Hanmi Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HAFC) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 665,100 shares, a growth of 8.7% from the November 30th total of 612,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 204,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Hanmi Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HAFC traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $23.62. 172,992 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 156,405. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.75. Hanmi Financial has a 1-year low of $14.45 and a 1-year high of $27.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $713.32 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 0.87.

Hanmi Financial (NASDAQ:HAFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49. Hanmi Financial had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 14.80%. The company had revenue of $108.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.23 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.62 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hanmi Financial will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hanmi Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Hanmi Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hanmi Financial

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its holdings in shares of Hanmi Financial by 129.0% during the 2nd quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 59,904 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 33,747 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its position in Hanmi Financial by 74.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 67,158 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,248,000 after buying an additional 28,561 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hanmi Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $534,000. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Hanmi Financial by 26.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 879,979 shares of the bank’s stock worth $16,368,000 after acquiring an additional 182,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Hanmi Financial by 24.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 60,051 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,117,000 after acquiring an additional 11,911 shares during the period. 88.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HAFC. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Hanmi Financial from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $21.00 price target on shares of Hanmi Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Hanmi Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $29.00 target price (up previously from $24.00) on shares of Hanmi Financial in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised Hanmi Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $20.00 to $25.50 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $24.38.

About Hanmi Financial

Hanmi Financial Corporation operates as the holding company for Hanmi Bank that provides business banking products and services in the United States. It offers various deposit products, including noninterest-bearing checking accounts, savings accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit.