Short Interest in German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) Decreases By 46.3%

German American Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:GABC) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 923,500 shares, a decline of 46.3% from the January 31st total of 1,720,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 108,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.5 days.

German American Bancorp Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of German American Bancorp stock traded up $0.32 during trading on Friday, reaching $39.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 153,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 114,897. German American Bancorp has a 52-week low of $30.66 and a 52-week high of $47.08. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.16 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

German American Bancorp (NASDAQ:GABC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.09. German American Bancorp had a net margin of 23.69% and a return on equity of 12.04%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that German American Bancorp will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current year.

German American Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This is a positive change from German American Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. German American Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 41.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at German American Bancorp

In other German American Bancorp news, Director Diane B. Medley acquired 1,000 shares of German American Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $39.21 per share, for a total transaction of $39,210.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $210,557.70. This represents a 22.88 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 1,083 shares of company stock valued at $42,607. Corporate insiders own 6.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 42.2% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,321 shares of the bank’s stock worth $632,000 after acquiring an additional 4,840 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 18,090 shares of the bank’s stock worth $692,000 after acquiring an additional 1,986 shares in the last quarter. Rosenthal Henry Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Rosenthal Henry Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 62,415 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,419,000 after acquiring an additional 1,290 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of German American Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $597,000. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of German American Bancorp by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 134,124 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,197,000 after acquiring an additional 25,753 shares in the last quarter. 46.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on GABC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of German American Bancorp from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of German American Bancorp from $49.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, German American Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.40.

German American Bancorp Company Profile

German American Bancorp, Inc operates as a financial holding company for German American Bank that provides retail and commercial banking services. The company operates through three segments: Core Banking, Wealth Management Services, and Insurance Operations. The Core Banking segment accepts deposits from the general public; and originates consumer, commercial and agricultural, commercial and agricultural real estate, and residential mortgage loans, as well as sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market.