Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 272,400 shares, a decline of 17.0% from the September 15th total of 328,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 50,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.4 days.

Insider Activity at Community West Bancshares

In other Community West Bancshares news, EVP Patrick A. Luis sold 1,650 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.37, for a total value of $31,960.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $534,340.82. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 11.15% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Community West Bancshares

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Community West Bancshares during the third quarter worth about $132,000. Systematic Financial Management LP purchased a new position in Community West Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,842,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Community West Bancshares by 198.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 365,965 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,770,000 after acquiring an additional 243,165 shares during the period. Bridgewealth Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Community West Bancshares during the second quarter worth $226,000. Finally, Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Community West Bancshares in the second quarter worth $268,000. Institutional investors own 33.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CWBC. StockNews.com cut shares of Community West Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Community West Bancshares from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.33.

Community West Bancshares Stock Up 0.5 %

CWBC stock traded up $0.10 during trading on Monday, reaching $18.51. The stock had a trading volume of 21,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 49,957. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $349.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.86 and a beta of 0.86. Community West Bancshares has a one year low of $15.22 and a one year high of $24.47. The company's 50 day moving average is $19.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.53.

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.42. Community West Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.99% and a net margin of 7.51%. The business had revenue of $30.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $37.14 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Community West Bancshares will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Community West Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. Community West Bancshares's dividend payout ratio is 25.40%.

Community West Bancshares Company Profile

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.