Short Interest in National Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NKSH) Rises By 26.9%

National Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:NKSH) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 76,900 shares, a growth of 26.9% from the November 15th total of 60,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 12,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.4 days. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On National Bankshares

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of National Bankshares by 71.7% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,757 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of National Bankshares by 16.7% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,500 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Eagle Ridge Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of National Bankshares during the third quarter worth $211,000. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of National Bankshares by 290.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,487 shares of the bank’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 5,569 shares during the period. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in National Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at $226,000. Institutional investors own 29.73% of the company’s stock.

National Bankshares Stock Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:NKSH traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $31.23. The company had a trading volume of 6,624 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,501. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $30.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.88. National Bankshares has a one year low of $26.50 and a one year high of $37.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $198.62 million, a PE ratio of 21.54 and a beta of 0.59.

National Bankshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 25th. This represents a dividend yield of 5%. This is a boost from National Bankshares’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.55. National Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 107.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NKSH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded shares of National Bankshares from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Bankshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th.

National Bankshares Company Profile

National Bankshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for the National Bank of Blacksburg that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, businesses, non-profits, and local governments. The company accepts interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing demand deposit accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts.