National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE:NBHC) Short Interest Up 47.9% in March

Key Points

• Short interest surged 47.9% in March to 2,095,005 shares, equal to about 4.8% of the stock shorted and a days-to-cover ratio of 2.4 based on average volume.
• National Bank reported $0.60 EPS versus $0.87 expected and revenue of $99.08M versus $107.48M, yet the board raised the quarterly dividend to $0.32 (annualized $1.28), a 3.1% yield.
• Insider John Steinmetz bought 24,200 shares at $41.41, boosting his holdings to 536,504 shares, while analysts maintain a consensus Moderate Buy rating with a $45.40 average target (five Buys, two Holds) and recent price targets up to $48.

National Bank Holdings Corporation (NYSE:NBHC - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,095,005 shares, a growth of 47.9% from the March 15th total of 1,416,125 shares. Currently, 4.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 873,268 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NBHC shares. Zacks Research upgraded National Bank from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Piper Sandler began coverage on National Bank in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings raised National Bank from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded National Bank from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of National Bank in a report on Monday, April 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, National Bank presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $45.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider John Steinmetz bought 24,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $41.41 per share, for a total transaction of $1,002,122.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 536,504 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,216,630.64. This represents a 4.72% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NBHC. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its stake in National Bank by 215.4% during the 4th quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 1,162,432 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,184,000 after purchasing an additional 793,902 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in National Bank in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,869,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in National Bank by 138.9% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 430,078 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $16,347,000 after purchasing an additional 250,088 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of National Bank by 143.3% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 405,164 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $15,400,000 after acquiring an additional 238,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of National Bank by 2,057.9% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 199,453 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,633,000 after acquiring an additional 190,210 shares during the last quarter. 92.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

National Bank Price Performance

NYSE NBHC traded down $0.04 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $41.93. 240,908 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 560,497. The company has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.71 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. National Bank has a 12-month low of $33.75 and a 12-month high of $42.99.

National Bank (NYSE:NBHC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.27). National Bank had a net margin of 18.66% and a return on equity of 8.65%. The company had revenue of $99.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $107.48 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that National Bank will post 3.31 EPS for the current year.

National Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from National Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. National Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.91%.

National Bank Company Profile

National Bank Holdings Corporation NYSE: NBHC is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Through its network of community bank subsidiaries, the company provides deposit, lending and payment solutions to consumer, small business and commercial clients across multiple U.S. markets.

Since its founding in 1992, National Bank Holdings has pursued a growth strategy focused on acquiring and integrating locally branded community banks. Its footprint spans the Midwest and Southern United States, including Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Illinois and Tennessee.

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