FlexShopper, Inc. (NASDAQ:FPAY) Short Interest Up 42.9% in February

FlexShopper, Inc. (NASDAQ:FPAY) saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 135,600 shares, a growth of 42.9% from the January 31st total of 94,900 shares. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 237,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Harold Russell Jr. Heiser bought 30,000 shares of FlexShopper stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $1.45 per share, with a total value of $43,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 969,874 shares in the company, valued at $1,406,317.30. The trade was a 3.19 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 30.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FPAY. Waterfall Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FlexShopper in the third quarter worth about $1,678,000. Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FlexShopper in the fourth quarter worth about $163,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of FlexShopper by 48.4% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 283,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 92,368 shares during the period. Citadel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of FlexShopper in the fourth quarter worth about $109,000. Finally, Heron Bay Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of FlexShopper in the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.41% of the company’s stock.

FlexShopper Price Performance

NASDAQ FPAY traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $1.47. 141,928 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 284,018. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1.45. FlexShopper has a 1 year low of $0.97 and a 1 year high of $2.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.65, a current ratio of 7.98 and a quick ratio of 7.98. The company has a market cap of $31.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.65 and a beta of 1.54.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on FPAY. Maxim Group raised their price target on FlexShopper from $2.00 to $4.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $2.50 price target on shares of FlexShopper in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th.

FlexShopper Company Profile

FlexShopper, Inc, a financial technology company, operates an e-commerce marketplace to shop electronics, home furnishings, and other durable goods on a lease-to-own (LTO) basis. The company offers consumer electronics; home appliances; computers, such as tablets and wearables; smartphones; tires; and jewelry and furniture, including accessories.