Short Interest in TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) Increases By 33.5%

TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 888,800 shares, a growth of 33.5% from the February 13th total of 665,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 230,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

TowneBank Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TOWN traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $34.63. 14,488 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 240,120. The firm has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a PE ratio of 16.11 and a beta of 0.88. TowneBank has a fifty-two week low of $25.70 and a fifty-two week high of $38.28. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.80.

TowneBank (NASDAQ:TOWN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.07. TowneBank had a return on equity of 7.77% and a net margin of 15.77%. As a group, analysts predict that TowneBank will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

TowneBank Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. TowneBank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On TowneBank

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in TOWN. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of TowneBank in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. bought a new position in shares of TowneBank in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of TowneBank by 258.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,434 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of TowneBank during the 3rd quarter valued at $73,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of TowneBank by 807.8% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,215 shares of the bank’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 1,971 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $41.00 price objective on shares of TowneBank in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

About TowneBank

TowneBank provides retail and commercial banking services for individuals, commercial enterprises, and professionals. The company operates through three segments: Banking, Realty, and Insurance. It accepts various deposits, including demand deposits, savings accounts, money rate savings, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.