Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Short Interest Update

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 175,900 shares, a decline of 27.6% from the October 15th total of 243,000 shares. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 112,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance

Westamerica Bancorporation stock traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $56.86. The stock had a trading volume of 96,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,973. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $50.91 and its 200 day moving average is $50.13. Westamerica Bancorporation has a one year low of $43.82 and a one year high of $59.33.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.27. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 45.73% and a return on equity of 17.67%. The business had revenue of $74.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.74 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. Westamerica Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on WABC. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Westamerica Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Maxim Group lowered Westamerica Bancorporation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WABC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,512,538 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $171,693,000 after acquiring an additional 19,654 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,904,399 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $92,421,000 after acquiring an additional 199,721 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 861,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,801,000 after acquiring an additional 41,841 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 334,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,521,000 after acquiring an additional 22,902 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 70.2% in the 1st quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 252,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,326,000 after acquiring an additional 104,029 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.89% of the company’s stock.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.