Short Interest in VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) Drops By 39.1%

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totaling 241,570 shares, a decrease of 39.1% from the May 31st total of 396,968 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 114,727 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.1 days. Currently, 0.8% of the company’s stock are sold short.

VersaBank Stock Down 7.7%

VBNK stock opened at $21.90 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.59. VersaBank has a 52 week low of $10.10 and a 52 week high of $25.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $705.18 million, a P/E ratio of 31.74 and a beta of 1.04.

VersaBank (NASDAQ:VBNK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 3rd. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $28.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.86 million. VersaBank had a return on equity of 8.32% and a net margin of 9.34%. On average, analysts expect that VersaBank will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current year.

VersaBank Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a $0.025 dividend. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. VersaBank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Roth Mkm upgraded VersaBank from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded VersaBank from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of VersaBank from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On VersaBank

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of VersaBank during the third quarter valued at about $3,418,000. Pembroke Management LTD boosted its stake in shares of VersaBank by 40.7% in the fourth quarter. Pembroke Management LTD now owns 736,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,029,000 after purchasing an additional 213,037 shares during the period. Mudita Advisors LLP purchased a new position in VersaBank in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,462,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of VersaBank by 2.7% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,915,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,604,000 after acquiring an additional 75,358 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Rose Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of VersaBank during the third quarter worth approximately $720,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.86% of the company’s stock.

About VersaBank

VersaBank is a Canadian Schedule I chartered bank that operates as a fully digital institution, offering a range of deposit and lending solutions through its proprietary technology platform. Headquartered in London, Ontario, the bank has chosen to forego a traditional branch network in favor of online and digital distribution, enabling it to serve clients across Canada and the United States with efficiency and lower overhead.

The bank’s primary business activities include the origination and securitization of commercial loans, equipment financing, residential mortgages and construction loans.