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

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

BRKL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James upgraded Brookline Bancorp from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Brookline Bancorp in a report on Tuesday. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded Brookline Bancorp from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $14.50 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRKL. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 0.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,129,487 shares of the bank's stock worth $41,667,000 after buying an additional 21,345 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in Brookline Bancorp by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,133,365 shares of the bank's stock worth $36,974,000 after purchasing an additional 224,888 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,089,187 shares of the bank's stock worth $21,084,000 after purchasing an additional 26,714 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 36.7% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 878,717 shares of the bank's stock valued at $10,369,000 after purchasing an additional 236,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 109.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 647,100 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,529,000 after purchasing an additional 338,050 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.91% of the company's stock.

Brookline Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BRKL traded down $0.17 during trading on Friday, hitting $12.52. The company had a trading volume of 403,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 560,109. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.26 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Brookline Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $8.01 and a fifty-two week high of $13.15.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The bank reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.01). Brookline Bancorp had a return on equity of 5.94% and a net margin of 10.51%. On average, research analysts expect that Brookline Bancorp will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookline Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.135 dividend. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Brookline Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 70.13%.

Brookline Bancorp Company Profile

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.