Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC) Short Interest Up 30.9% in December

Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 600,200 shares, an increase of 30.9% from the December 15th total of 458,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 297,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Flushing Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $15.50.

Flushing Financial Stock Performance

FFIC traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $14.76. 198,729 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 539,370. The stock has a market cap of $496.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Flushing Financial has a 12 month low of $10.74 and a 12 month high of $18.59.

Flushing Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.96%. Flushing Financial's payout ratio is currently 101.15%.

Insider Transactions at Flushing Financial

In other Flushing Financial news, CAO Astrid Burrowes sold 8,000 shares of Flushing Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.19, for a total transaction of $129,520.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 34,853 shares in the company, valued at $564,270.07. The trade was a 18.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sam Sang Ki Han sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.47, for a total value of $154,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 67,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,040,372.97. This trade represents a 12.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.31% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Flushing Financial

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Flushing Financial by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 694,216 shares of the bank's stock valued at $10,124,000 after purchasing an additional 5,128 shares during the last quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Flushing Financial by 11.5% in the second quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 453,198 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,960,000 after purchasing an additional 46,800 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Flushing Financial by 16.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 452,209 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,947,000 after buying an additional 62,659 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Flushing Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $4,936,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Flushing Financial by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 334,900 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,404,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares in the last quarter. 67.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Flushing Financial

Flushing Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Flushing Bank that provides banking products and services primarily to consumers, businesses, and governmental units. It offers various deposit products, including checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, non-interest bearing demand accounts, NOW accounts, and certificates of deposit.