Verition Fund Management LLC Buys New Stake in Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC)

Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 338,551 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $4,936,000. Verition Fund Management LLC owned approximately 1.16% of Flushing Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fourthstone LLC purchased a new stake in Flushing Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $510,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Flushing Financial by 18.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 19,661 shares of the bank’s stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 3,100 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Flushing Financial by 64.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,259 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $106,000 after buying an additional 2,836 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Flushing Financial by 2.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 233,236 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,401,000 after buying an additional 4,876 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in Flushing Financial by 123.5% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 27,383 shares of the bank’s stock worth $399,000 after acquiring an additional 15,129 shares during the last quarter. 67.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Flushing Financial Price Performance

FFIC opened at $17.87 on Tuesday. Flushing Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $10.74 and a 1 year high of $18.59. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $15.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $519.46 million, a PE ratio of 20.54 and a beta of 0.75. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.92%. Flushing Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sam Sang Ki Han sold 10,000 shares of Flushing Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.47, for a total value of $154,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 67,251 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,040,372.97. The trade was a 12.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Astrid Burrowes sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.19, for a total value of $129,520.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 34,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $564,270.07. The trade was a 18.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Flushing Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Flushing Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.50.

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.