Northeast Community Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:NECB) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest rose 34.6% in March to 113,660 shares, equal to about 0.9% of float and a days-to-cover ratio of 3.0 based on average volume.
• Northeast is returning capital and trading at a modest valuation — it launched a $1.4M buyback (up to 0.5% of shares) and pays a quarterly dividend that annualizes to $0.80 for a 3.4% yield

Northeast Community Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:NECB - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 113,660 shares, an increase of 34.6% from the February 26th total of 84,473 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 38,489 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Northeast Community Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ NECB traded down $0.28 on Friday, hitting $23.45. The company had a trading volume of 27,512 shares, compared to its average volume of 39,391. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The company's fifty day moving average price is $23.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.18. The company has a market capitalization of $324.31 million, a PE ratio of 7.19 and a beta of 0.41. Northeast Community Bancorp has a 12-month low of $19.27 and a 12-month high of $25.18.

Northeast Community Bancorp (NASDAQ:NECB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The savings and loans company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $26.44 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $27.15 million. Northeast Community Bancorp had a net margin of 28.07% and a return on equity of 13.07%. As a group, analysts predict that Northeast Community Bancorp will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Northeast Community Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, December 8th that permits the company to repurchase $1.40 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the savings and loans company to purchase up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Northeast Community Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 5th. Investors of record on Monday, April 6th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 6th. Northeast Community Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 24.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings upgraded Northeast Community Bancorp from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of Northeast Community Bancorp by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 21,495 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $487,000 after buying an additional 2,138 shares during the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its position in Northeast Community Bancorp by 182.5% during the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 23,619 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $557,000 after acquiring an additional 15,257 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northeast Community Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $239,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Northeast Community Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $710,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Northeast Community Bancorp by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 79,197 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $1,791,000 after acquiring an additional 7,686 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.25% of the company's stock.

About Northeast Community Bancorp

Northeast Community Bancorp is the bank holding company for Northeast Bank, a full-service community bank headquartered in DeKalb, Illinois. Through its principal subsidiary, the company provides a range of deposit and lending products designed to meet the financial needs of individuals, families and small to mid-sized businesses in the northern Illinois market.

The company’s loan portfolio encompasses consumer and mortgage lending, home equity lines of credit, commercial real estate financing, SBA-guaranteed loans and agricultural credits.

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