FS Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSBW) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

FS Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSBW) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 58,683 shares, a decrease of 17.1% from the December 15th total of 70,778 shares. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 12,053 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.9 days. Based on an average daily volume of 12,053 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.9 days. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on FSBW shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of FS Bancorp in a research note on Friday, January 9th. DA Davidson set a $41.00 price target on shares of FS Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, FS Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

FS Bancorp Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of FSBW opened at $42.00 on Tuesday. FS Bancorp has a 1-year low of $34.61 and a 1-year high of $44.22. The company has a market capitalization of $315.84 million, a P/E ratio of 10.24 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.70.

FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The bank reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $39.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.15 million. FS Bancorp had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 10.84%. Sell-side analysts forecast that FS Bancorp will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other FS Bancorp news, Director Marina Cofer-Wildsmith sold 3,807 shares of FS Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $152,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $223,600. The trade was a 40.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,356 shares of company stock valued at $254,241. 12.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FS Bancorp

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in FS Bancorp by 1,852.8% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 703 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of FS Bancorp by 135.0% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,060 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in FS Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in FS Bancorp by 104.3% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,330 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in FS Bancorp by 16.4% in the second quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,746 shares of the bank’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.88% of the company’s stock.

About FS Bancorp

FS Bancorp, Inc (NASDAQ: FSBW) is a bank holding company headquartered in Illinois that provides community banking services in the Midwestern United States. Through its wholly owned banking subsidiary, the company offers a full suite of deposit products, including checking and savings accounts, money market instruments, certificates of deposit and online banking platforms.

On the lending side, FS Bancorp extends commercial and industrial loans, residential mortgage financing, consumer credit and agricultural lending.