Short Interest in AmeriServ Financial Inc. (NASDAQ:ASRV) Increases By 155.5%

AmeriServ Financial Inc. (NASDAQ:ASRV) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 206,424 shares, an increase of 155.5% from the July 15th total of 80,806 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 25,128 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised AmeriServ Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

AmeriServ Financial Stock Performance

Shares of AmeriServ Financial stock remained flat at $5.01 on Friday. 34,879 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 29,353. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.97 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 0.43. AmeriServ Financial has a twelve month low of $2.80 and a twelve month high of $5.19. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $4.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

AmeriServ Financial (NASDAQ:ASRV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter. AmeriServ Financial had a net margin of 9.51% and a return on equity of 7.21%. The firm had revenue of $15.90 million during the quarter.

AmeriServ Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. AmeriServ Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 23.53%.

Institutional Trading of AmeriServ Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in AmeriServ Financial during the second quarter worth $587,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in AmeriServ Financial by 4.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 101,212 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 4,396 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in AmeriServ Financial by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 142,798 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $456,000 after acquiring an additional 2,830 shares during the period. 31.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AmeriServ Financial Company Profile

AmeriServ Financial, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of consumer, mortgage and commercial financial products and services through its subsidiary. It operates through the following segments: Community Banking, Wealth Management, and Investment or Parent. The Community Banking segment includes both retail and commercial banking activities. The Wealth Management segment involves in the operations of a Trust Company, West Chester Capital Advisors an investment advisory firm, and Financial Services.