Teton Advisors Inc. Trims Stock Position in Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC)

Teton Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC) by 21.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 235,000 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 64,000 shares during the period. Flushing Financial accounts for about 1.7% of Teton Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Teton Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Flushing Financial were worth $3,356,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Flushing Financial during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. US Bancorp DE increased its position in Flushing Financial by 496.0% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,725 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 3,100 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Flushing Financial by 27.8% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 6,434 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Flushing Financial by 64.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,259 shares of the bank’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,836 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Flushing Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $141,000. 67.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Flushing Financial Stock Performance

FFIC stock opened at $11.02 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. Flushing Financial Co. has a one year low of $10.65 and a one year high of $18.59. The firm has a market cap of $372.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.91 and a beta of 0.67.

Flushing Financial (NASDAQ:FFIC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.21 by ($0.07). Flushing Financial had a negative net margin of 6.46% and a positive return on equity of 3.25%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Flushing Financial Co. will post 1.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Flushing Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.99%. Flushing Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -87.13%.

Insider Activity at Flushing Financial

In other Flushing Financial news, EVP Thomas Buonaiuto sold 6,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.92, for a total value of $87,856.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,336 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $417,781.12. This trade represents a 17.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 6.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Flushing Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th.

Flushing Financial Profile

Flushing Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Flushing Bank that provides banking products and services primarily to consumers, businesses, and governmental units. It offers various deposit products, including checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, non-interest bearing demand accounts, NOW accounts, and certificates of deposit.