HomeStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:HMST – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 872,000 shares, a growth of 58.7% from the April 15th total of 549,400 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 163,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.3 days. Approximately 5.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other HomeStreet news, Director Joanne R. Harrell bought 1,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $14.87 per share, with a total value of $25,055.95. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 14,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,667.09. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 4.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HMST. Terrapin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in HomeStreet in the third quarter valued at $1,926,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in HomeStreet in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,112,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in HomeStreet by 1,460.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 184,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,433,000 after acquiring an additional 172,221 shares in the last quarter. Acuitas Investments LLC raised its position in HomeStreet by 86.0% during the fourth quarter. Acuitas Investments LLC now owns 342,643 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,529,000 after acquiring an additional 158,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of HomeStreet by 47.6% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 435,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,389,000 after purchasing an additional 140,357 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.71% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms have commented on HMST. Wedbush upped their price objective on HomeStreet from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on HomeStreet in a report on Thursday. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of HomeStreet from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.50.
HomeStreet Stock Performance
NASDAQ HMST traded down $0.11 on Friday, hitting $10.33. 73,313 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 154,017. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.40, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $13.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.26. The firm has a market cap of $194.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.85 and a beta of 1.35. HomeStreet has a fifty-two week low of $4.20 and a fifty-two week high of $15.82.
HomeStreet Company Profile
HomeStreet, Inc operates as the bank holding company for HomeStreet Bank that provides commercial, mortgage, and consumer/retail banking services in the Western United States. The company offers personal and business checking, savings, interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; credit cards; insurance; and treasury management services.