Western New England Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WNEB) Short Interest Up 16.8% in August

Western New England Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WNEB) saw a large growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 64,700 shares, a growth of 16.8% from the August 15th total of 55,400 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 35,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WNEB shares. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded Western New England Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Western New England Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Western New England Bancorp from $7.00 to $8.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Western New England Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $8.00.

Institutional Trading of Western New England Bancorp

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WNEB. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 19.3% in the first quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 22,124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $170,000 after buying an additional 3,585 shares in the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 397,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,045,000 after buying an additional 22,000 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western New England Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at $85,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 70,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 5,250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Western New England Bancorp by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 344,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,643,000 after acquiring an additional 26,960 shares in the last quarter. 67.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western New England Bancorp Trading Up 0.9 %

Western New England Bancorp stock opened at $8.73 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Western New England Bancorp has a 52 week low of $6.00 and a 52 week high of $9.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $8.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.38. The company has a market capitalization of $186.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.55 and a beta of 0.69.

Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $30.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.22 million. Western New England Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.73% and a net margin of 11.33%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Western New England Bancorp will post 0.53 EPS for the current year.

Western New England Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 7th. Western New England Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.67%.

Western New England Bancorp Company Profile

Western New England Bancorp, Inc operates as the holding company for Westfield Bank that provides a range of commercial and retail banking products and services to individuals and businesses. The company accepts various deposit accounts, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing checking, commercial checking, business, nonprofit and municipal checking, savings, money market and sweep, individual retirement, and other savings accounts; time deposits; certificates of deposit; and interest on lawyer's trust accounts.