First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) Short Interest Update

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 18,000 shares, an increase of 32.4% from the February 13th total of 13,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 11,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 0.3% of the company's shares are sold short.

First Guaranty Bancshares Trading Up 21.0 %

Shares of First Guaranty Bancshares stock traded up $1.48 on Thursday, reaching $8.54. The company had a trading volume of 13,128 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,650. The firm has a market cap of $106.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.44 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $9.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.68. First Guaranty Bancshares has a 1 year low of $6.56 and a 1 year high of $15.25.

First Guaranty Bancshares (NASDAQ:FGBI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The bank reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by ($0.13). First Guaranty Bancshares had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 5.62%. As a group, research analysts predict that First Guaranty Bancshares will post 0.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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First Guaranty Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.01 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 27th. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. First Guaranty Bancshares's dividend payout ratio is 4.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Guaranty Bancshares

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FGBI. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of First Guaranty Bancshares by 5.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 40,338 shares of the bank's stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 2,010 shares during the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC bought a new stake in First Guaranty Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at about $366,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in First Guaranty Bancshares by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 68,788 shares of the bank's stock valued at $733,000 after buying an additional 5,070 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors bought a new position in First Guaranty Bancshares in the 4th quarter worth about $122,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Guaranty Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth approximately $400,000. 39.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About First Guaranty Bancshares

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc operates as the holding company for First Guaranty Bank that provides commercial banking services in Louisiana and Texas. It offers various deposit products, including personal and business checking, savings, money market, and demand accounts, as well as time deposits to consumers, small businesses, and municipalities.