HDFC Bank Limited (NYSE:HDB) Short Interest Up 14.8% in October

HDFC Bank Limited (NYSE:HDB) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 18,920,000 shares, an increase of 14.8% from the September 30th total of 16,480,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,860,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.6 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HDFC Bank

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HDB. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of HDFC Bank in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in HDFC Bank during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in HDFC Bank by 70.2% during the third quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 667 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of HDFC Bank in the 1st quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of HDFC Bank by 56.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 903 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. 17.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HDFC Bank Price Performance

Shares of HDB stock traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $63.53. The stock had a trading volume of 133,573 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,031,896. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.92. HDFC Bank has a 12 month low of $52.16 and a 12 month high of $67.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HDB. StockNews.com downgraded shares of HDFC Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of HDFC Bank from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd.

HDFC Bank Company Profile

HDFC Bank Limited provides banking and financial services to individuals and businesses in India, Bahrain, Hong Kong, and Dubai. The company operates in three segments: Wholesale Banking, Retail Banking, and Treasury Services. It accepts savings, salary, current, rural, public provident fund, pension, and demat accounts; fixed and recurring deposits; and safe deposit lockers, as well as offshore accounts and deposits, and overdrafts against fixed deposits.