Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) Short Interest Update

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 178,200 shares, a drop of 14.5% from the December 15th total of 208,500 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 48,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Community West Bancshares

In other Community West Bancshares news, Director Steven D. Mcdonald sold 9,155 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.51, for a total value of $196,924.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 317,391 shares in the company, valued at $6,827,080.41. This represents a 2.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert Bartlein acquired 2,000 shares of Community West Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $18.75 per share, for a total transaction of $37,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 433,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,135,175. The trade was a 0.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired a total of 2,432 shares of company stock valued at $45,616 over the last ninety days. 11.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Community West Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Community West Bancshares by 284.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 641,347 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,864,000 after purchasing an additional 474,671 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP bought a new position in Community West Bancshares during the second quarter valued at $4,842,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of Community West Bancshares by 198.0% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 365,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,770,000 after acquiring an additional 243,165 shares during the period. Fourthstone LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Community West Bancshares by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 1,868,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,993,000 after acquiring an additional 149,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Community West Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,770,000. 33.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Community West Bancshares from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Community West Bancshares Price Performance

CWBC traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $18.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 62,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,773. Community West Bancshares has a 12 month low of $15.50 and a 12 month high of $24.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $20.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.70. The stock has a market cap of $358.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.64 and a beta of 0.92.

Community West Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.54%. Community West Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 72.73%.

Community West Bancshares Company Profile

Community West Bancshares operates as the bank holding company for Community West Bank, N.A. that provides various financial products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and fixed rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposits; and cash management products.