Short Interest in ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB) Expands By 6.7%

ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 642,500 shares, an increase of 6.7% from the January 15th total of 602,000 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 214,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNOB has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded ConnectOne Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of ConnectOne Bancorp from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Institutional Trading of ConnectOne Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in ConnectOne Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $14,127,000. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. bought a new position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $6,488,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of ConnectOne Bancorp by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 826,463 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,934,000 after purchasing an additional 155,573 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in ConnectOne Bancorp by 42.4% in the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 282,221 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,466,000 after purchasing an additional 84,028 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in ConnectOne Bancorp by 52.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 242,920 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,262,000 after buying an additional 83,950 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.70% of the company's stock.

ConnectOne Bancorp Stock Down 2.6 %

CNOB stock traded down $0.68 during trading on Friday, reaching $25.22. The stock had a trading volume of 150,241 shares, compared to its average volume of 201,066. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $24.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.91. The company has a market capitalization of $967.69 million, a P/E ratio of 14.25 and a beta of 1.30. ConnectOne Bancorp has a 1-year low of $17.07 and a 1-year high of $29.31.

ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.10. ConnectOne Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.77% and a net margin of 13.80%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that ConnectOne Bancorp will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current year.

ConnectOne Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. ConnectOne Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.68%.

About ConnectOne Bancorp

ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for ConnectOne Bank that provides commercial banking products and services for small and mid-sized businesses, local professionals, and individuals in the New York Metropolitan area and South Florida market. The company offers personal and business checking, money market, and time and savings accounts; credit cards, wire transfers, safe deposit boxes, automated teller services and telephone, and internet and mobile banking.