Kingstone Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:KINS) Short Interest Up 47.7% in May

Kingstone Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ:KINS - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 425,300 shares, an increase of 47.7% from the April 30th total of 288,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 359,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Thomas Newgarden acquired 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $16.77 per share, for a total transaction of $209,625.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 51,715 shares in the company, valued at approximately $867,260.55. The trade was a 31.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 12.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kingstone Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KINS. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Kingstone Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Kingstone Companies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Kingstone Companies by 370.6% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,847 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 2,242 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Kingstone Companies by 53,684.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,219 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 10,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Kingstone Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $103,000. 14.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kingstone Companies Price Performance

Shares of KINS stock traded down $0.31 on Tuesday, hitting $15.73. 232,454 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 325,971. The company has a 50 day moving average of $17.14 and a 200 day moving average of $16.26. The stock has a market cap of $220.31 million, a P/E ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Kingstone Companies has a 12 month low of $4.64 and a 12 month high of $22.40.

Kingstone Companies (NASDAQ:KINS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The insurance provider reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter. Kingstone Companies had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 10.60%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Kingstone Companies will post 1.4 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered Kingstone Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 17th.

About Kingstone Companies

Kingstone Companies, Inc, through its subsidiary, provides property and casualty insurance products to individuals in the United States. It offers personal line of insurance products, such as homeowners and dwelling fire, cooperative/condominiums, renters, and personal umbrella policies. The company also provides for-hire vehicle physical damage only policies for livery and car service vehicles and taxicabs; and canine legal liability policies.