Short Interest in SB Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBFG) Drops By 12.7%

SB Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBFG) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 114,200 shares, a decline of 12.7% from the December 31st total of 130,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 21,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.3 days. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

SB Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of SBFG stock opened at $22.37 on Monday. SB Financial Group has a 12 month low of $13.01 and a 12 month high of $23.00. The stock has a market cap of $148.76 million, a PE ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $21.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.17.

SB Financial Group (NASDAQ:SBFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.11. SB Financial Group had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 8.98%. On average, equities analysts expect that SB Financial Group will post 1.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SB Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.145 dividend. This represents a $0.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. SB Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.72%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SB Financial Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of SB Financial Group by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 71,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,462,000 after purchasing an additional 2,416 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of SB Financial Group by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 39,637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $829,000 after purchasing an additional 1,875 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of SB Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $408,000. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of SB Financial Group by 325.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 972 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.67% of the company’s stock.

About SB Financial Group

SB Financial Group, Inc operates as the financial holding company for the State Bank and Trust Company that provides a range of commercial banking and wealth management services to individual and corporate customers primarily in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. It offers checking, savings, money market accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit; and commercial, consumer, agricultural, and residential mortgage loans.