Short Interest in Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) Grows By 26.5%

Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 25,800 shares, a growth of 26.5% from the February 28th total of 20,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 14,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Oak Valley Bancorp Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Oak Valley Bancorp stock traded up $0.20 on Tuesday, reaching $25.16. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,401 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,026. Oak Valley Bancorp has a 52-week low of $23.00 and a 52-week high of $32.24. The company has a market capitalization of $210.27 million, a P/E ratio of 8.33 and a beta of 0.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $25.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.40.

Oak Valley Bancorp (NASDAQ:OVLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter. Oak Valley Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.28% and a net margin of 28.03%.

Oak Valley Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.30 dividend. This is a boost from Oak Valley Bancorp’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.23. This represents a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. Oak Valley Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 19.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Oak Valley Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday.

Insider Transactions at Oak Valley Bancorp

In other news, Director Gary Strong bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $27.17 per share, for a total transaction of $27,170.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 11,842 shares in the company, valued at $321,747.14. This represents a 9.22 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director H Randolph Holder, Jr. acquired 2,393 shares of Oak Valley Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.00 per share, for a total transaction of $59,825.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 150,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,750,650. The trade was a 1.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 9,924 shares of company stock worth $256,577 over the last three months. 19.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OVLY. Valmark Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Oak Valley Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,726,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Oak Valley Bancorp by 118.8% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 23,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $688,000 after acquiring an additional 12,782 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Oak Valley Bancorp by 122.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 15,368 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 8,471 shares in the last quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oak Valley Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $212,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Oak Valley Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $163,000. 30.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oak Valley Bancorp Company Profile

Oak Valley Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Oak Valley Community Bank that provides a range of commercial banking services to individuals and small to medium-sized businesses in the Central Valley and the Eastern Sierras. The company's deposits products include checking and savings, money market, health savings, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.