Short Interest in BCB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCBP) Rises By 10.5%

BCB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCBP) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 100,400 shares, an increase of 10.5% from the August 15th total of 90,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 54,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days. Currently, 0.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

BCB Bancorp Price Performance

BCBP traded up $0.04 during trading on Monday, reaching $12.52. The stock had a trading volume of 18,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 49,982. The business has a 50-day moving average of $11.90 and a 200-day moving average of $10.73. BCB Bancorp has a one year low of $9.19 and a one year high of $13.90. The stock has a market cap of $213.22 million, a PE ratio of 8.03 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.21.

BCB Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCBP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The bank reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $20.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.65 million. BCB Bancorp had a net margin of 10.67% and a return on equity of 7.42%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that BCB Bancorp will post 1.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BCB Bancorp 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 issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.11%. BCB Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on BCB Bancorp from $11.50 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on BCB Bancorp from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Institutional Trading of BCB Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in BCB Bancorp by 1,232.6% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,492 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 2,305 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in BCB Bancorp by 91.1% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 2,727 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in BCB Bancorp by 92.5% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,201 shares of the bank’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 3,460 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in BCB Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $119,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in BCB Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $178,000. 36.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BCB Bancorp

BCB Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for BCB Community Bank that engages in the provision of banking products and services to businesses and individuals in the United States. The company offers insured deposit products, including savings and club accounts, interest and non-interest-bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.