KB Financial Group Inc (NYSE:KB) Short Interest Up 60.6% in March

KB Financial Group Inc (NYSE:KB) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 541,955 shares, an increase of 60.6% from the February 26th total of 337,359 shares. Approximately 0.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 380,878 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KB Financial Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of KB. Seeds Investor LLC boosted its position in KB Financial Group by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Seeds Investor LLC now owns 6,606 shares of the bank’s stock worth $568,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of KB Financial Group by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,821 shares of the bank’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of KB Financial Group by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,515 shares of the bank’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of KB Financial Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 25,927 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,150,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of KB Financial Group by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,519 shares of the bank’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.52% of the company’s stock.

KB Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of KB Financial Group stock traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $99.60. 214,788 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 332,933. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.14 billion, a PE ratio of 9.33, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $103.39 and a 200 day moving average of $91.15. KB Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $46.38 and a fifty-two week high of $119.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48.

KB Financial Group (NYSE:KB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, January 31st. The bank reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter. KB Financial Group had a net margin of 17.16% and a return on equity of 9.67%. On average, analysts predict that KB Financial Group will post 8.87 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of KB Financial Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of KB Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of KB Financial Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

KB Financial Group Company Profile

KB Financial Group Inc is a South Korea-based financial holding company that offers a broad range of banking and financial services. Headquartered in Seoul and listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker KB, the group operates through a set of specialized subsidiaries to provide integrated financial solutions for retail, corporate and institutional clients.

The company’s principal businesses include retail and corporate banking, securities and investment banking, insurance (life and non-life), asset management, credit card and consumer finance, and leasing.