Hanmi Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HAFC) Short Interest Down 8.3% in August

Hanmi Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HAFC) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 600,700 shares, a decline of 8.3% from the August 15th total of 655,400 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 182,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Hanmi Financial Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ:HAFC opened at $16.69 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $17.65 and a 200 day moving average of $17.17. Hanmi Financial has a 52 week low of $13.35 and a 52 week high of $27.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $508.71 million, a P/E ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 0.99.

Hanmi Financial (NASDAQ:HAFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.03. Hanmi Financial had a net margin of 26.96% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The company had revenue of $63.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.70 million. On average, research analysts predict that Hanmi Financial will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Hanmi Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 7th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 4th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.99%. Hanmi Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Hanmi Financial in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hanmi Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hanmi Financial by 112.9% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 848,953 shares of the bank’s stock worth $15,765,000 after purchasing an additional 450,211 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Hanmi Financial by 250.1% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 400,743 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,918,000 after purchasing an additional 286,267 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in Hanmi Financial by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,506,824 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,692,000 after purchasing an additional 155,777 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP raised its holdings in Hanmi Financial by 87.8% in the 1st quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 286,343 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,317,000 after purchasing an additional 133,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Hanmi Financial by 29.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 590,699 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,819,000 after purchasing an additional 132,840 shares in the last quarter. 88.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hanmi Financial Company Profile

Hanmi Financial Corporation operates as the holding company for Hanmi Bank that provides business banking products and services in the United States. It offers various deposit products, including noninterest-bearing checking accounts, interest-bearing checking and savings accounts, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit.