Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC) Shares Purchased by D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Flushing Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FFIC - Free Report) by 51.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 110,101 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 37,181 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned about 0.33% of Flushing Financial worth $1,572,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FFIC. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in Flushing Financial by 153.4% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 825,708 shares of the bank's stock valued at $11,791,000 after purchasing an additional 499,821 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Partners GP LP acquired a new position in shares of Flushing Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $6,783,000. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp acquired a new position in shares of Flushing Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $4,998,000. Foundry Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Flushing Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $4,498,000. Finally, Curi RMB Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Flushing Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,459,000. 67.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Thomas Buonaiuto sold 6,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.92, for a total value of $87,856.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 32,336 shares in the company, valued at $417,781.12. This represents a 17.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 5.66% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Flushing Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th.

Flushing Financial Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of Flushing Financial stock traded down $0.24 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $11.92. The company had a trading volume of 204,937 shares, compared to its average volume of 249,830. The company's 50-day moving average is $12.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.18. Flushing Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $10.65 and a twelve month high of $18.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $402.62 million, a P/E ratio of -11.80 and a beta of 0.81.

Flushing Financial (NASDAQ:FFIC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $58.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.38 million. Flushing Financial had a positive return on equity of 3.25% and a negative net margin of 6.46%. Analysts anticipate that Flushing Financial Co. will post 1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Flushing Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Flushing Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -61.97%.

Flushing Financial Profile

Flushing Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Flushing Bank that provides banking products and services primarily to consumers, businesses, and governmental units. It offers various deposit products, including checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, non-interest bearing demand accounts, NOW accounts, and certificates of deposit.