Short Interest in First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC) Grows By 259.2%

First United Co. (NASDAQ:FUNC) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 17,600 shares, an increase of 259.2% from the November 30th total of 4,900 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 19,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.9 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded First United from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th.

First United Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FUNC traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $33.86. 18,744 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 22,740. The stock has a market cap of $219.04 million, a P/E ratio of 13.76 and a beta of 0.80. First United has a 12-month low of $19.17 and a 12-month high of $36.49. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $34.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

First United (NASDAQ:FUNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $28.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.30 million. First United had a net margin of 14.70% and a return on equity of 12.20%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First United will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First United Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.60%. First United’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First United

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in First United by 72.2% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 66,698 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,360,000 after purchasing an additional 27,973 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in First United by 13.2% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 39,947 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $816,000 after buying an additional 4,645 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in First United by 7.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 372,330 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,603,000 after acquiring an additional 24,457 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of First United by 14.3% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 82,195 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,678,000 after acquiring an additional 10,280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huber Capital Management LLC raised its stake in First United by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Huber Capital Management LLC now owns 124,556 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,543,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. 33.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First United

First United Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First United Bank & Trust that provides various retail and commercial banking services to businesses and individuals. It offers various deposit products, which includes checking, savings, money market deposit, and regular and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), as well as certificates of deposit.