Short Interest in Horizon Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBNC) Rises By 20.7%

Horizon Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBNC) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 664,700 shares, a growth of 20.7% from the February 28th total of 550,500 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 169,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HBNC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Horizon Bancorp from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Horizon Bancorp from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Horizon Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Horizon Bancorp by 362.6% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,573 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in Horizon Bancorp by 508.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,098 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,753 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Horizon Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Horizon Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Horizon Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $82,000. 64.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Horizon Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of HBNC stock opened at $14.61 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $642.84 million, a P/E ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $16.36 and its 200 day moving average is $16.43. Horizon Bancorp has a 1-year low of $11.18 and a 1-year high of $19.18.

Horizon Bancorp (NASDAQ:HBNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.03). Horizon Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.48% and a net margin of 9.86%. Research analysts predict that Horizon Bancorp will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Horizon Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.38%. Horizon Bancorp’s payout ratio is 80.00%.

Horizon Bancorp Company Profile

Horizon Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Horizon Bank that engages in the provision of commercial and retail banking services. The company offers checking, saving, money market, certificate of deposits, individual retirement accounts, and time deposits, as well as non-interest- and interest-bearing demand deposits.