Standard Chartered PLC (OTCMKTS:SCBFF) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Standard Chartered PLC (OTCMKTS:SCBFF - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 317,800 shares, an increase of 130.5% from the May 15th total of 137,900 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 28,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 11.4 days.

Standard Chartered Stock Down 3.4%

SCBFF stock traded down $0.54 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $15.22. The company had a trading volume of 2,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,480. Standard Chartered has a 52 week low of $8.53 and a 52 week high of $16.43. The company has a market capitalization of $37.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.71 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.87.

Standard Chartered (OTCMKTS:SCBFF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. Standard Chartered had a return on equity of 8.80% and a net margin of 8.56%. The firm had revenue of $5.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.07 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Standard Chartered will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Standard Chartered Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 27th. This is an increase from Standard Chartered's previous dividend of $0.09. Standard Chartered's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.10%.

About Standard Chartered

Standard Chartered PLC, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Americas. The company operates in three segments: Corporate, Commercial & Institutional Banking; Consumer, Private & Business Banking; and Ventures.