Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI) Short Interest Up 41.7% in June

Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 56,100 shares, an increase of 41.7% from the May 31st total of 39,600 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 48,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on FISI shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Financial Institutions in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $19.00 target price (down from $23.00) on shares of Financial Institutions in a report on Monday, March 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Financial Institutions has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.67.

Financial Institutions Stock Down 1.7 %

FISI traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $19.00. 57,252 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 51,969. Financial Institutions has a fifty-two week low of $15.22 and a fifty-two week high of $23.11. The company has a market cap of $293.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.57 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $17.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $18.95.

Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by ($0.55). Financial Institutions had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 9.66%. The firm had revenue of $50.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.48 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Financial Institutions will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Financial Institutions Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Financial Institutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Financial Institutions

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Courier Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Financial Institutions by 55.8% during the 1st quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 338,686 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,374,000 after buying an additional 121,233 shares during the last quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Financial Institutions by 59.6% during the first quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 301,281 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,670,000 after purchasing an additional 112,481 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Financial Institutions by 27.7% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 298,398 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,615,000 after purchasing an additional 64,680 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its holdings in shares of Financial Institutions by 128.2% during the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 51,877 shares of the bank’s stock worth $873,000 after purchasing an additional 29,140 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Financial Institutions by 110.9% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 49,236 shares of the bank’s stock worth $829,000 after buying an additional 25,889 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.45% of the company’s stock.

Financial Institutions Company Profile

Financial Institutions, Inc operates as a holding company for the Five Star Bank, a chartered bank that provides banking and financial services to individuals, municipalities, and businesses in New York. The company provides checking and savings account programs, including money market accounts, certificates of deposit, sweep investments, and individual retirement and other qualified plan accounts, as well as NOW accounts.