KBC Group NV (OTCMKTS:KBCSY) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

KBC Group NV (OTCMKTS:KBCSY - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,200 shares, a drop of 44.2% from the April 30th total of 12,900 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 75,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.1 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on KBCSY. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KBC Group in a report on Monday, May 19th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of KBC Group in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of KBC Group in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd.

KBC Group Price Performance

Shares of OTCMKTS KBCSY traded up $1.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $50.51. 19,627 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 41,148. The stock has a market cap of $42.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.22, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $46.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.27. KBC Group has a 1-year low of $33.98 and a 1-year high of $50.51.

KBC Group (OTCMKTS:KBCSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 15th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.03. KBC Group had a net margin of 13.32% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.03 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that KBC Group will post 4.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KBC Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 8th were issued a $1.1873 dividend. This is a positive change from KBC Group's previous dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.77%. KBC Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.43%.

About KBC Group

KBC Group NV, together with its subsidiaries, provides integrated bank-insurance services primarily for retail, private banking, small and medium sized enterprises, and mid-cap clients. The company offers demand deposits and savings accounts; home and mortgage loans; consumer finance and SME funding services; credit, investment fund and asset management, and life and non-life insurance; and cash management, payments, trade finance, lease, money market, capital market products, and stockbroking services.