BayFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:BAFN) Short Interest Up 27.8% in January

BayFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:BAFN) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,200 shares, an increase of 27.8% from the December 31st total of 7,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 6,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

BayFirst Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BAFN traded up $0.50 during trading on Monday, hitting $15.88. 6,000 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,999. The company has a market capitalization of $65.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.22 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.98. BayFirst Financial has a 1-year low of $10.40 and a 1-year high of $17.50. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.40.

BayFirst Financial (NASDAQ:BAFN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. BayFirst Financial had a return on equity of 14.81% and a net margin of 8.80%.

BayFirst Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st will be paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. BayFirst Financial’s payout ratio is currently 12.70%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in BayFirst Financial stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of BayFirst Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:BAFN) by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,101 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,490 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 0.87% of BayFirst Financial worth $475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 16.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BayFirst Financial

BayFirst Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for BayFirst National Bank that provides community banking services for businesses and individuals. The company offers checking, savings, NOW, and money market deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and individual retirement account; and safety deposit boxes.