Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBMT) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBMT) was the target of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 16,400 shares, a growth of 20.6% from the November 30th total of 13,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 17,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.9 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Stock Up 2.4 %

Eagle Bancorp Montana stock traded up $0.36 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $15.33. The stock had a trading volume of 11,403 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,821. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.90 million, a P/E ratio of 14.19 and a beta of 0.51. Eagle Bancorp Montana has a 12-month low of $12.32 and a 12-month high of $17.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $16.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.25.

Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.04. Eagle Bancorp Montana had a return on equity of 4.96% and a net margin of 7.03%. The business had revenue of $31.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.60 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Eagle Bancorp Montana will post 1.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.142 dividend. This represents a $0.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Eagle Bancorp Montana’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Kenneth M. Walsh sold 6,705 shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.44, for a total transaction of $110,230.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 141,033 shares in the company, valued at $2,318,582.52. The trade was a 4.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Peter Joseph Johnson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.97, for a total value of $84,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 57,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $981,510.86. The trade was a 7.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,795 shares of company stock worth $213,610. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eagle Bancorp Montana

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EBMT. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 5.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 22,448 shares of the bank’s stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Eagle Bancorp Montana by 3.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 93,172 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,236,000 after purchasing an additional 2,937 shares during the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 171,174 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,254,000 after purchasing an additional 21,441 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. increased its position in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 62,574 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $988,000 after purchasing an additional 7,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fourthstone LLC increased its position in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 520,663 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,221,000 after purchasing an additional 5,898 shares during the last quarter. 35.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Company Profile

Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Opportunity Bank of Montana that provides various retail banking products and services to small businesses and individuals in Montana. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit accounts.