Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BHLB) Short Interest Update

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:BHLB - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,490,000 shares, an increase of 25.8% from the February 28th total of 1,980,000 shares. Approximately 5.4% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 493,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ellen Tulchiner sold 1,052 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.97, for a total transaction of $31,528.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Berkshire Hills Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BHLB. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 282.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Berkshire Hills Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 142.7% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,291 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 805.3% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,376 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp by 2,259.4% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,265 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 2,169 shares during the last quarter. 83.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BHLB. Piper Sandler raised shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Berkshire Hills Bancorp in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Berkshire Hills Bancorp from $32.00 to $34.50 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.13.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BHLB traded down $0.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $23.53. 989,834 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 340,267. The company's 50 day moving average price is $27.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.24. The firm has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 16.34 and a beta of 0.58. Berkshire Hills Bancorp has a 52 week low of $20.50 and a 52 week high of $32.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp (NYSE:BHLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.06. Berkshire Hills Bancorp had a net margin of 8.56% and a return on equity of 8.91%. On average, equities analysts expect that Berkshire Hills Bancorp will post 2.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 20th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Berkshire Hills Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Company Profile

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Berkshire Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company provides various deposit accounts, including demand deposit, interest-bearing checking, regular savings, money market savings, time certificates of deposit, and retirement deposit accounts.