Short Interest in Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBMT) Decreases By 23.1%

Eagle Bancorp Montana, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBMT) saw a large decrease in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,300 shares, a decrease of 23.1% from the March 15th total of 23,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 31,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days. Currently, 0.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Price Performance

EBMT stock opened at $16.52 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $16.87 and a 200-day moving average of $16.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.78 million, a P/E ratio of 13.32 and a beta of 0.40. Eagle Bancorp Montana has a 12 month low of $12.42 and a 12 month high of $18.37.

Eagle Bancorp Montana (NASDAQ:EBMT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.15. Eagle Bancorp Montana had a net margin of 8.02% and a return on equity of 5.68%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eagle Bancorp Montana will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Bancorp Montana Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.1425 per share. This represents a $0.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Eagle Bancorp Montana’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. Eagle Bancorp Montana’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Eagle Bancorp Montana from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th.

Insider Activity at Eagle Bancorp Montana

In other Eagle Bancorp Montana news, Director Kenneth M. Walsh sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.11, for a total transaction of $151,100.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 126,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,904,358.63. The trade was a 7.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Eagle Bancorp Montana in the 1st quarter worth $599,000. Rhino Investment Partners Inc grew its position in Eagle Bancorp Montana by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 203,826 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,125,000 after acquiring an additional 32,074 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in Eagle Bancorp Montana by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 108,715 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,667,000 after acquiring an additional 20,812 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Eagle Bancorp Montana during the fourth quarter valued at about $308,000. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its position in Eagle Bancorp Montana by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 220,349 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,378,000 after purchasing an additional 19,907 shares in the last quarter. 35.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Eagle Bancorp Montana

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.