Republic Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:RBCAA) Short Interest Update

Republic Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:RBCAA) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 127,034 shares, a growth of 26.2% from the February 26th total of 100,659 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 57,917 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on RBCAA. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Republic Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Republic Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

Republic Bancorp Stock Up 0.8%

NASDAQ RBCAA traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $69.75. 102,839 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 50,467. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.38 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50 day moving average of $70.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.38. Republic Bancorp has a 52-week low of $56.79 and a 52-week high of $78.25.

Republic Bancorp (NASDAQ:RBCAA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The bank reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $94.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.50 million. Republic Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 25.19%.

Republic Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.495 per share. This is a positive change from Republic Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 20th. This represents a $1.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Republic Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.46%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Republic Bancorp by 93.8% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 42,930 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,964,000 after purchasing an additional 20,781 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Republic Bancorp by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 73,735 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,087,000 after purchasing an additional 6,189 shares during the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Republic Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,102,000. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Republic Bancorp by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,952 shares of the bank’s stock worth $480,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Republic Bancorp by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 123,097 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,492,000 after buying an additional 6,189 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.37% of the company’s stock.

About Republic Bancorp

Republic Bancorp, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that operates through its principal subsidiary, Republic Bank & Trust Company. The company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services tailored to individuals, small businesses and middle‐market clients. Core offerings include deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, treasury and cash-management services, mortgage financing, SBA lending and wealth management solutions. Republic Bancorp also supports specialized financing needs through equipment leasing and small business advisory services.

Republic Bancorp’s branch network spans key markets in the U.S.