Short Interest in First Western Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYFW) Decreases By 35.1%

First Western Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYFW) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 42,900 shares, a decrease of 35.1% from the November 30th total of 66,100 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 26,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

First Western Financial Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MYFW traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $18.95. 2,539 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 25,005. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $20.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.14. First Western Financial has a 12-month low of $12.84 and a 12-month high of $22.32. The stock has a market cap of $183.13 million, a P/E ratio of 30.57 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.08). First Western Financial had a net margin of 3.33% and a return on equity of 2.44%. The firm had revenue of $45.06 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.10 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that First Western Financial will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Western Financial news, Director David R. Duncan sold 8,600 shares of First Western Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.03, for a total value of $163,658.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 8,760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $166,702.80. The trade was a 49.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 17.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Western Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in First Western Financial by 5.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 21,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after acquiring an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Western Financial by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 1,592 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in First Western Financial by 347.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 2,420 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in First Western Financial by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 174,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,492,000 after buying an additional 2,661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in First Western Financial by 5.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 112,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,245,000 after acquiring an additional 5,611 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MYFW shares. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on First Western Financial from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of First Western Financial from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

First Western Financial Company Profile

First Western Financial, Inc, a financial holding company, provides wealth advisory, private baking, personal trust, investment management, mortgage lending, and institutional asset management services. The company operates through two segments: Wealth Management and Mortgage. The Wealth Management segment provides deposit, loan, life insurance, and trust and investment management advisory products and services.