Short Interest in SB Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBFG) Grows By 3,342.1%

SB Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBFG) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 130,800 shares, a growth of 3,342.1% from the December 15th total of 3,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 20,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.4 days. Currently, 2.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SB Financial Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of SB Financial Group by 325.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,271 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 972 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of SB Financial Group by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 37,762 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $776,000 after acquiring an additional 1,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in SB Financial Group by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 71,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,462,000 after buying an additional 2,416 shares during the last quarter. 66.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SB Financial Group Trading Up 1.7 %

SBFG traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $19.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,759. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. SB Financial Group has a 52-week low of $13.01 and a 52-week high of $23.00. The firm has a market cap of $132.37 million, a P/E ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $20.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.49.

SB Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.145 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. This is a boost from SB Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. SB Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on SB Financial Group in a research note on Saturday, September 21st. They set a “hold” rating for the company.

About SB Financial Group

SB Financial Group, Inc operates as the financial holding company for the State Bank and Trust Company that provides a range of commercial banking and wealth management services to individual and corporate customers primarily in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. It offers checking, savings, money market accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit; and commercial, consumer, agricultural, and residential mortgage loans.