Short Interest in VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) Rises By 121.2%

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 30,300 shares, a growth of 121.2% from the September 30th total of 13,700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 39,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.8 days. Approximately 0.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on shares of VersaBank in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Roth Capital raised shares of VersaBank to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Roth Mkm initiated coverage on shares of VersaBank in a research note on Friday, September 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $16.67.

VersaBank Stock Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:VBNK traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $14.75. The company had a trading volume of 24,686 shares, compared to its average volume of 28,555. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $13.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.58. VersaBank has a one year low of $7.25 and a one year high of $15.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $383.06 million, a PE ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.79.

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 5th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $19.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.83 million. VersaBank had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 16.24%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that VersaBank will post 1.21 earnings per share for the current year.

VersaBank Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.018 dividend. This represents a $0.07 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. VersaBank’s dividend payout ratio is 5.38%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VersaBank

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in VersaBank by 17.5% in the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 408,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,321,000 after acquiring an additional 60,881 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in VersaBank by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 124,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,357,000 after acquiring an additional 92,166 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in VersaBank by 52.2% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 100,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 34,462 shares during the last quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp boosted its holdings in VersaBank by 6.1% in the second quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp now owns 84,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $904,000 after acquiring an additional 4,817 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ELCO Management Co. LLC boosted its holdings in VersaBank by 4.1% in the second quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC now owns 82,942 shares of the company’s stock valued at $892,000 after acquiring an additional 3,234 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.86% of the company’s stock.

About VersaBank

VersaBank provides various banking products and services in Canada and the United States. It offers deposit products, such as web-based chequing accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, registered retirement savings plans, and tax-free savings accounts, as well as deposit insurance products. The company also provides lending services, including point of sale financing that covers purchasing loan and lease receivables from finance companies operating in various industries; commercial banking services comprising commercial real estate, public sector/infrastructure financing, and condominium financing; and residential mortgages.