Short Interest in Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWBK) Rises By 29.0%

Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWBK – Get Rating) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 37,400 shares, an increase of 29.0% from the January 31st total of 29,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 7,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days. Currently, 0.6% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Hawthorn Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of Hawthorn Bancshares stock opened at $25.07 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $169.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.22 and a beta of 0.41. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $23.85 and its 200-day moving average is $23.34. Hawthorn Bancshares has a one year low of $21.06 and a one year high of $27.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $18.11 million for the quarter. Hawthorn Bancshares had a return on equity of 16.65% and a net margin of 24.93%.

Hawthorn Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 14th. Hawthorn Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jonathan L. States purchased 1,976 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $25.42 per share, for a total transaction of $50,229.92. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,229.92. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 12.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hawthorn Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HWBK. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC increased its position in Hawthorn Bancshares by 22.2% during the second quarter. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC now owns 5,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Hawthorn Bancshares by 6.7% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 217,471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,754,000 after buying an additional 13,718 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Hawthorn Bancshares by 0.9% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 176,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,860,000 after buying an additional 1,607 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 6.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 28.4% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 23,481 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $594,000 after purchasing an additional 5,196 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 32.88% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com started coverage on Hawthorn Bancshares in a report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock.

About Hawthorn Bancshares

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Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc operates as a bank holding company, which provides banking services to individual and corporate customers through its subsidiary, Hawthorn Bank. It offers checking and savings accounts, internet banking, debit cards, certificates of deposit, brokerage services, personal loans, installment loans, trust services, credit related insurance, and safe deposit boxes.