Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) Short Interest Update

Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,800,000 shares, an increase of 7.8% from the December 31st total of 1,670,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 697,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on BRKL. StockNews.com began coverage on Brookline Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Brookline Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $14.50 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Raymond James raised Brookline Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th.

Brookline Bancorp Stock Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ:BRKL opened at $12.06 on Tuesday. Brookline Bancorp has a 1 year low of $8.01 and a 1 year high of $13.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.66 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $12.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.07.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.01). Brookline Bancorp had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 5.94%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Brookline Bancorp will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookline Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.135 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.48%. Brookline Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 70.13%.

Institutional Trading of Brookline Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BRKL. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Brookline Bancorp by 7.1% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 51,037 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $426,000 after buying an additional 3,397 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can acquired a new position in shares of Brookline Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,042,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Brookline Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $182,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its position in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 562.0% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 108,292 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $904,000 after purchasing an additional 91,933 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 47.5% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 491,756 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,106,000 after purchasing an additional 158,329 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.91% of the company’s stock.

About Brookline Bancorp

Brookline Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company’s loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans.