National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE:NBHC) Short Interest Up 24.4% in March

National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE:NBHC) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,416,125 shares, an increase of 24.4% from the February 26th total of 1,138,630 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 598,449 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days. Currently, 3.2% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at National Bank

In other news, insider John Steinmetz purchased 24,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $41.41 per share, with a total value of $1,002,122.00. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 536,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,216,630.64. This trade represents a 4.72% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of National Bank

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its stake in National Bank by 650.9% in the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 796 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 690 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in National Bank in the 4th quarter worth $48,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in National Bank during the 4th quarter worth $66,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in National Bank by 50.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in National Bank during the fourth quarter valued at about $69,000. 92.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler started coverage on National Bank in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of National Bank from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of National Bank in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of National Bank in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of National Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.80.

National Bank Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NBHC traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $38.38. 449,134 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 588,581. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 13.47 and a beta of 0.79. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $40.28 and its 200-day moving average is $38.90. National Bank has a 52 week low of $32.83 and a 52 week high of $42.99.

National Bank (NYSE:NBHC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.27). National Bank had a net margin of 18.66% and a return on equity of 8.65%. The company had revenue of $99.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $107.48 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that National Bank will post 3.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from National Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. National Bank’s payout ratio is 44.91%.

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.