Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY) Short Interest Up 5.8% in October

Kearny Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:KRNY) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,650,000 shares, an increase of 5.8% from the October 15th total of 1,560,000 shares. Approximately 2.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 258,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.4 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kearny Financial

In related news, Director John F. Mcgovern bought 7,013 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $7.09 per share, for a total transaction of $49,722.17. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 300,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,127,000. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 8.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kearny Financial

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in Kearny Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Kearny Financial by 208.1% during the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,576 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 3,766 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Kearny Financial by 38.2% during the 2nd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 9,932 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 2,745 shares during the period. Numerai GP LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kearny Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Kearny Financial by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 11,462 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 1,465 shares during the period. 64.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kearny Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:KRNY traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $7.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 109,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 257,435. The business’s fifty day moving average is $7.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.34. The stock has a market cap of $505.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Kearny Financial has a 1 year low of $6.45 and a 1 year high of $10.57.

Kearny Financial (NASDAQ:KRNY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 26th. The savings and loans company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.16. The business had revenue of $43.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.40 million. Kearny Financial had a return on equity of 5.08% and a net margin of 10.96%.

Kearny Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 7th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.61%. Kearny Financial’s payout ratio is 81.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Kearny Financial in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock.

About Kearny Financial

Kearny Financial Corp. operates as the holding company for Kearny Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company offers various deposit products, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit accounts.