Northrim BanCorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NRIM) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Northrim BanCorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:NRIM) was the target of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 52,000 shares, a growth of 29.7% from the February 28th total of 40,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 49,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.1 days. Approximately 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Northrim BanCorp Stock Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:NRIM traded up $0.60 on Wednesday, hitting $74.60. The stock had a trading volume of 21,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 28,023. Northrim BanCorp has a 1 year low of $43.92 and a 1 year high of $91.72. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.31. The stock has a market cap of $411.87 million, a P/E ratio of 11.27 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Northrim BanCorp (NASDAQ:NRIM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.72. Northrim BanCorp had a return on equity of 14.86% and a net margin of 18.87%. Analysts predict that Northrim BanCorp will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrim BanCorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $0.64 per share. This is a boost from Northrim BanCorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. Northrim BanCorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Hovde Group assumed coverage on Northrim BanCorp in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $96.50 price target for the company.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrim BanCorp

In other Northrim BanCorp news, CEO Michael G. Huston sold 453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.18, for a total value of $40,398.54. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 23,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,118,827.62. This trade represents a 1.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 4.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NRIM. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrim BanCorp by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. DecisionPoint Financial LLC bought a new position in Northrim BanCorp in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Northrim BanCorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $112,000. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Northrim BanCorp by 13.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrim BanCorp by 25.8% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. 65.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Northrim BanCorp

Northrim BanCorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Northrim Bank that provides commercial banking products and services to businesses and professional individuals. It operates through two segments, Community Banking and Home Mortgage Lending. The company offers noninterest-bearing checking accounts and interest-bearing time deposits, checking and savings accounts, individual retirement and money market deposit accounts, certificates of deposit, and business sweep accounts.