First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIBK) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Key Points

• First Interstate BancSystem experienced a substantial 46.6% increase in short interest in September, totaling 4,690,000 shares, with a days-to-cover ratio of 5.1 days.
• Analysts have set varied price targets for FIBK, with Barclays raising their objective from $28.00 to $32.00 and DA Davidson increasing theirs from $35.00 to $38.00, reflecting a cautious shift in ratings across several firms.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 5.9% and a payout ratio of 84.68%.

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIBK - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,690,000 shares, an increase of 46.6% from the August 31st total of 3,200,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 924,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days. Based on an average trading volume of 924,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on FIBK. Barclays upgraded First Interstate BancSystem from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $28.00 to $32.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on First Interstate BancSystem from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of First Interstate BancSystem in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on First Interstate BancSystem from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised First Interstate BancSystem from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and set a $32.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Interstate BancSystem has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.14.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John M. Heyneman, Jr. sold 11,818 shares of First Interstate BancSystem stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.18, for a total value of $356,667.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,224 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $157,660.32. This trade represents a 69.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Susan Scott Heyneman Trust, Su sold 10,000 shares of First Interstate BancSystem stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.59, for a total transaction of $315,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 244,460 shares in the company, valued at $7,722,491.40. This represents a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 131,818 shares of company stock valued at $3,915,917 in the last ninety days. 8.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Interstate BancSystem

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 2,336.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 9,534 shares during the last quarter. First Interstate Bank increased its holdings in First Interstate BancSystem by 14.1% in the first quarter. First Interstate Bank now owns 5,053,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $144,778,000 after buying an additional 624,268 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in First Interstate BancSystem by 26.4% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $146,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 1.1% during the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 1,017,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,144,000 after buying an additional 11,209 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 1,258.8% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,851 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 4,494 shares during the period. 88.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Interstate BancSystem Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of FIBK stock traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $31.84. The stock had a trading volume of 739,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 842,837. First Interstate BancSystem has a 12-month low of $22.95 and a 12-month high of $36.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.34 and a beta of 0.79. The firm's 50-day moving average is $31.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

First Interstate BancSystem (NASDAQ:FIBK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $248.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $253.73 million. First Interstate BancSystem had a return on equity of 6.82% and a net margin of 16.04%.The company's revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.58 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that First Interstate BancSystem will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Interstate BancSystem Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. First Interstate BancSystem's payout ratio is presently 84.68%.

First Interstate BancSystem Company Profile

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc operates as the bank holding company for First Interstate Bank that provides range of banking products and services in the United States. It offers various traditional depository products, including checking, savings, and time deposits; and repurchase agreements primarily for commercial and municipal depositors.

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