Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 328,000 shares, a decline of 7.5% from the August 31st total of 354,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 66,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.9 days.

Community West Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CWBC traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $18.97. The stock had a trading volume of 26,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 50,942. The stock has a market capitalization of $357.96 million, a P/E ratio of 10.07 and a beta of 0.87. Community West Bancshares has a 1-year low of $13.55 and a 1-year high of $24.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.33.

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.42. The company had revenue of $30.46 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.14 million. Community West Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.99% and a net margin of 7.51%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Community West Bancshares will post 1.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Community West Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.53%. Community West Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.40%.

Insider Activity at Community West Bancshares

In other Community West Bancshares news, EVP Patrick A. Luis sold 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.37, for a total value of $31,960.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,586 shares in the company, valued at $534,340.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Community West Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CWBC. Systematic Financial Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Community West Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,842,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Community West Bancshares by 198.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 365,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,770,000 after acquiring an additional 243,165 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewealth Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Community West Bancshares during the second quarter worth $226,000. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Community West Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at $268,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Community West Bancshares in the 2nd quarter worth $1,153,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CWBC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Community West Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Community West Bancshares from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.33.

Community West Bancshares Company Profile

Community West Bancshares operates as the bank holding company for Community West Bank, N.A. that provides various financial products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and fixed rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposits; and cash management products.