Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,800,000 shares, a growth of 7.8% from the December 15th total of 1,670,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 697,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on BRKL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Brookline Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $14.50 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. StockNews.com began coverage on Brookline Bancorp in a research note on Sunday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James upgraded Brookline Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $16.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th.

Brookline Bancorp Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of BRKL traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $12.00. The stock had a trading volume of 420,101 shares, compared to its average volume of 878,047. Brookline Bancorp has a 1-year low of $8.01 and a 1-year high of $13.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.79. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $12.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.83.

Brookline Bancorp (NASDAQ:BRKL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.03. Brookline Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 11.40%. The company had revenue of $165.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $88.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Brookline Bancorp will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookline Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.135 per share. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Brookline Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookline Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BRKL. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,129,487 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,667,000 after buying an additional 21,345 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Brookline Bancorp by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,089,187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $21,084,000 after purchasing an additional 26,714 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 21.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,431,291 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,951,000 after buying an additional 249,113 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 4.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,267,888 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,587,000 after purchasing an additional 59,317 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 36.7% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 878,717 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,369,000 after acquiring an additional 236,066 shares in the last quarter. 78.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brookline Bancorp Company Profile

Brookline Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company’s loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans.