Short Interest in Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) Declines By 15.1%

Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) saw a significant drop in short interest in the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 260,057 shares, a drop of 15.1% from the February 12th total of 306,206 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 70,105 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Based on an average daily volume of 70,105 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Western New England Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of WNEB stock opened at $12.75 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.50. The company has a market capitalization of $258.32 million, a PE ratio of 16.78 and a beta of 0.79. Western New England Bancorp has a twelve month low of $7.63 and a twelve month high of $14.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05. Western New England Bancorp had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 6.31%. The firm had revenue of $22.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.62 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Western New England Bancorp will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western New England Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 11th. Western New England Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 36.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western New England Bancorp

In other news, Director Philip R. Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.17, for a total transaction of $39,510.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $98,735.49. The trade was a 28.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in Western New England Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey purchased a new position in shares of Western New England Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,003 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 2,446 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 51,300.0% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 8,721 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Western New England Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $93,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WNEB shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Western New England Bancorp from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research upgraded Western New England Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western New England Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $11.00.

Western New England Bancorp Company Profile

Western New England Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Westfield, Massachusetts. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Westfield Bank, the company provides a full suite of commercial and consumer banking services. Its operations focus on serving small to mid-sized businesses, professional practices, and individual customers, with a strategy centered on relationship-driven banking and community involvement.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, along with business cash-management solutions.