Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 759,500 shares, a drop of 23.7% from the March 31st total of 995,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 492,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 1.3% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Kearny Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 12th.

Kearny Financial Stock Performance

KRNY stock traded down $0.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $5.72. 325,124 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 494,642. Kearny Financial has a twelve month low of $5.44 and a twelve month high of $9.46. The company has a market capitalization of $368.58 million, a P/E ratio of 22.88 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97.

Kearny Financial (NASDAQ:KRNY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The savings and loans company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $19.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.60 million. Kearny Financial had a return on equity of 4.04% and a net margin of 4.80%.

Kearny Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.69%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. Kearny Financial's dividend payout ratio is 176.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Melvina Wong-Zaza acquired 3,945 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.47 per share, for a total transaction of $25,524.15. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,595 shares in the company, valued at $42,669.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Kearny Financial news, Director Christopher Petermann bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $6.14 per share, with a total value of $61,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,139 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $344,693.46. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Melvina Wong-Zaza bought 3,945 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $6.47 per share, for a total transaction of $25,524.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at $42,669.65. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 15,945 shares of company stock worth $98,664. Corporate insiders own 8.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Kearny Financial by 44.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,199 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Kearny Financial by 55.6% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,216 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 4,363 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Kearny Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $94,000. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of Kearny Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $123,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Kearny Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Kearny Financial Company Profile

Kearny Financial Corp. operates as the holding company for Kearny Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company offers various deposit products, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit accounts.

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