Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) Short Interest Down 11.9% in February

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC - Get Free Report) saw a significant decrease in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 129,900 shares, a decrease of 11.9% from the January 31st total of 147,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 50,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Community West Bancshares Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CWBC traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $18.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 82,447 shares, compared to its average volume of 51,772. Community West Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $14.52 and a fifty-two week high of $24.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $343.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.87 and a beta of 0.91.

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.07). Community West Bancshares had a return on equity of 7.90% and a net margin of 4.59%. As a group, analysts forecast that Community West Bancshares will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

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Community West Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Community West Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Community West Bancshares from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com raised Community West Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Community West Bancshares from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th.

Insider Transactions at Community West Bancshares

In other Community West Bancshares news, Director Steven D. Mcdonald sold 9,155 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.51, for a total value of $196,924.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 317,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,827,080.41. This represents a 2.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James J. Kim purchased 1,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.36 per share, for a total transaction of $27,776.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,178 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,044,690.08. This represents a 2.73 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 4,748 shares of company stock worth $85,887 and sold 18,747 shares worth $385,851. Company insiders own 11.15% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Community West Bancshares

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Community West Bancshares by 33.8% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Community West Bancshares by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,600 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Community West Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its position in Community West Bancshares by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 23,890 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $463,000 after purchasing an additional 1,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Community West Bancshares by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 48,419 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $938,000 after buying an additional 1,623 shares in the last quarter. 33.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Community West Bancshares

Community West Bancshares operates as the bank holding company for Community West Bank, N.A. that provides various financial products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and fixed rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposits; and cash management products.