Short Interest in Western New England Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WNEB) Expands By 142.4%

Western New England Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:WNEB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 147,400 shares, a growth of 142.4% from the February 28th total of 60,800 shares. Currently, 0.8% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 55,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Seaport Res Ptn raised Western New England Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Western New England Bancorp Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of WNEB traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $9.30. The stock had a trading volume of 54,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 43,431. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.08. Western New England Bancorp has a 12 month low of $6.00 and a 12 month high of $10.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market capitalization of $192.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61 and a beta of 0.71.

Western New England Bancorp (NASDAQ:WNEB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.04. Western New England Bancorp had a net margin of 9.51% and a return on equity of 4.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.12 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Western New England Bancorp will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western New England Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. Western New England Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Institutional Trading of Western New England Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 129,892 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,195,000 after buying an additional 2,735 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 83,595 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $769,000 after purchasing an additional 4,050 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,495,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,756,000 after purchasing an additional 5,560 shares in the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Western New England Bancorp by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 7,314 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 6,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Western New England Bancorp by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 56,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 8,434 shares during the last quarter. 67.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Western New England Bancorp

Western New England Bancorp, Inc operates as the holding company for Westfield Bank that provides a range of commercial and retail banking products and services to individuals and businesses. The company accepts various deposit accounts, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing checking, commercial checking, business, nonprofit and municipal checking, savings, money market and sweep, individual retirement, and other savings accounts; time deposits; certificates of deposit; and interest on lawyer's trust accounts.