Unity Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNTY) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Unity Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:UNTY) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 33,200 shares, a growth of 40.1% from the October 31st total of 23,700 shares. Approximately 0.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 25,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.3 days.

Insider Transactions at Unity Bancorp

In other Unity Bancorp news, Director Mark S. Brody sold 2,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.33, for a total transaction of $132,524.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 70,002 shares in the company, valued at $3,313,194.66. The trade was a 3.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Vincent Geraci sold 1,043 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.98, for a total transaction of $46,914.14. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 8,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,085. This represents a 11.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 28.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Unity Bancorp by 2,329.8% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Unity Bancorp by 84.6% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 1,129 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Unity Bancorp in the third quarter valued at $208,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in Unity Bancorp in the second quarter valued at $202,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Unity Bancorp by 93.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 14,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 6,846 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.31% of the company’s stock.

Unity Bancorp Stock Down 0.5 %

UNTY traded down $0.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.40. The stock had a trading volume of 8,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,764. The company has a market capitalization of $453.36 million, a PE ratio of 11.67 and a beta of 0.99. Unity Bancorp has a twelve month low of $25.33 and a twelve month high of $48.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.16. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.63.

Unity Bancorp (NASDAQ:UNTY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $27.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.40 million. Unity Bancorp had a net margin of 24.46% and a return on equity of 14.63%. On average, research analysts predict that Unity Bancorp will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Unity Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. Unity Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $44.00 target price (up previously from $40.00) on shares of Unity Bancorp in a research report on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com lowered Unity Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Unity Bancorp Company Profile

Unity Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for Unity Bank that provides range of commercial and retail banking services to individuals, small and medium sized businesses, and professional communities. It offers personal and business checking accounts, time deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, and retirement accounts, as well as noninterest and interest-bearing demand deposits.