FS Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSBW) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

FS Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSBW) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 41,800 shares, a decrease of 21.3% from the January 15th total of 53,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 15,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days.

FS Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSBW remained flat at $39.04 during mid-day trading on Friday. 15,134 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,695. FS Bancorp has a 1-year low of $30.64 and a 1-year high of $49.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $305.29 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average is $41.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.12). FS Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.35% and a net margin of 16.97%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that FS Bancorp will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

FS Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. This is a positive change from FS Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 6th. FS Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of FS Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FS Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in FS Bancorp by 354.0% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,026 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in FS Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $62,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in FS Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $103,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in FS Bancorp by 27.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,909 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $161,000 after buying an additional 851 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in FS Bancorp by 165.1% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,146 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 2,582 shares during the period. 63.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

FS Bancorp Company Profile

FS Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for 1st Security Bank of Washington that provides banking and financial services to local families, local and regional businesses, and industry niches. The company operates in two segments, Commercial and Consumer Banking; and Home Lending. It offers various deposit instruments, including checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit.