Short Interest in BCB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCBP) Rises By 14.2%

BCB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCBP) saw a large increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 69,800 shares, an increase of 14.2% from the May 31st total of 61,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 44,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days. Currently, 0.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark D. Hogan purchased 5,000 shares of BCB Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $9.90 per share, with a total value of $49,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 83,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $825,184.80. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Mark D. Hogan purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $9.90 per share, for a total transaction of $49,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 83,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $825,184.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Tara L. French acquired 2,500 shares of BCB Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $10.70 per share, for a total transaction of $26,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,750. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 16,422 shares of company stock valued at $163,776 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 28.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BCB Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in BCB Bancorp by 91.1% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 2,727 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of BCB Bancorp by 92.5% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,201 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 3,460 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its holdings in shares of BCB Bancorp by 25.1% during the first quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 17,348 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $181,000 after purchasing an additional 3,483 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of BCB Bancorp by 8.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 64,643 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $676,000 after purchasing an additional 4,867 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio lifted its holdings in BCB Bancorp by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 43,600 shares of the bank’s stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares during the period. 36.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BCB Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ BCBP traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $10.36. The company had a trading volume of 2,396 shares, compared to its average volume of 48,027. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market cap of $175.71 million, a P/E ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 0.58. BCB Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $9.19 and a fifty-two week high of $13.90. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.88.

BCB Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCBP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $51.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.87 million. BCB Bancorp had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 13.41%. Equities analysts predict that BCB Bancorp will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

BCB Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.18%. BCB Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of BCB Bancorp from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.75.

BCB Bancorp Company Profile

BCB Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for BCB Community Bank that engages in the provision of banking products and services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company offers insured deposit products, including savings and club accounts, interest and non-interest-bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.