First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIBK) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIBK) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,720,000 shares, a growth of 17.7% from the March 15th total of 2,310,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 875,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Lorrie F. Asker sold 1,921 shares of First Interstate BancSystem stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.05, for a total value of $50,042.05. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $179,979.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other First Interstate BancSystem news, EVP Karlyn M. Knieriem sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.76, for a total transaction of $77,604.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $551,229.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Lorrie F. Asker sold 1,921 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.05, for a total transaction of $50,042.05. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $179,979.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,531 shares of company stock valued at $197,645. 6.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Interstate BancSystem

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FIBK. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in First Interstate BancSystem by 132.8% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Interstate BancSystem during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 205.3% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 95.6% during the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clear Street Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of First Interstate BancSystem during the fourth quarter valued at about $71,000. 88.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Interstate BancSystem Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FIBK opened at $24.86 on Tuesday. First Interstate BancSystem has a 52-week low of $20.81 and a 52-week high of $32.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $26.11 and a 200 day moving average of $26.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a PE ratio of 10.02 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.77.

First Interstate BancSystem (NASDAQ:FIBK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $252.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $254.50 million. First Interstate BancSystem had a net margin of 18.04% and a return on equity of 8.47%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First Interstate BancSystem will post 2.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Interstate BancSystem Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This is an increase from First Interstate BancSystem’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.56%. First Interstate BancSystem’s payout ratio is currently 75.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on FIBK. TheStreet lowered shares of First Interstate BancSystem from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of First Interstate BancSystem from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of First Interstate BancSystem in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.00.

About First Interstate BancSystem

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc operates as the bank holding company for First Interstate Bank that provides range of banking products and services in the United States. It offers various traditional depository products, including checking, savings, and time deposits; and repurchase agreements primarily for commercial and municipal depositors.