National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE:NBHC) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE:NBHC) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 540,774 shares, a decrease of 19.8% from the December 15th total of 674,113 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 331,215 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.6 days. Based on an average daily volume of 331,215 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.6 days. Currently, 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Institutional Trading of National Bank

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in National Bank by 2.0% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 14,842 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $573,000 after acquiring an additional 291 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in National Bank by 5.7% in the third quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 6,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of National Bank by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in shares of National Bank by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 11,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of National Bank by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 20,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $792,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NBHC shares. Stephens upgraded National Bank from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $42.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Zacks Research raised National Bank from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of National Bank in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.50.

National Bank Stock Performance

Shares of NBHC opened at $39.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $38.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.35. The stock has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.60 and a beta of 0.81. National Bank has a one year low of $32.83 and a one year high of $44.84.

National Bank (NYSE:NBHC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.06. National Bank had a return on equity of 9.56% and a net margin of 20.50%.The firm had revenue of $108.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $107.56 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that National Bank will post 3.31 EPS for the current year.

National Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. This is a positive change from National Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of ($0.30). National Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.24%.

About National Bank

National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE: NBHC) is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Through its network of community bank subsidiaries, the company provides deposit, lending and payment solutions to consumer, small business and commercial clients across multiple U.S. markets.

Since its founding in 1992, National Bank Holdings has pursued a growth strategy focused on acquiring and integrating locally branded community banks. Its footprint spans the Midwest and Southern United States, including Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Illinois and Tennessee.