Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) Short Interest Up 35.8% in December

Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,670,000 shares, a growth of 35.8% from the November 30th total of 1,230,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 678,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.5 days.

Brookline Bancorp Trading Down 1.4 %

BRKL traded down $0.17 on Friday, hitting $11.77. 797,947 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 548,896. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a PE ratio of 14.18 and a beta of 0.78. Brookline Bancorp has a 12 month low of $8.01 and a 12 month high of $13.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.48.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $165.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.67 million. Brookline Bancorp had a net margin of 11.40% and a return on equity of 6.20%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Brookline Bancorp will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookline Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a $0.135 dividend. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Brookline Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on BRKL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Brookline Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $14.50 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Brookline Bancorp in a research note on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Brookline Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $16.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BRKL. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 174.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,154 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 3,279 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $103,000. Townsquare Capital LLC bought a new position in Brookline Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $111,000. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Brookline Bancorp during the third quarter valued at $117,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Brookline Bancorp in the third quarter worth $118,000. 78.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brookline Bancorp Company Profile

Brookline Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company’s loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans.