Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 35,509 Shares of Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 689,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 35,509 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Community West Bancshares were worth $13,358,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CWBC. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Community West Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. US Bancorp DE bought a new stake in shares of Community West Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Forum Financial Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Community West Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Potentia Wealth acquired a new stake in Community West Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth approximately $254,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in Community West Bancshares by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 16,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 2,164 shares during the period. 33.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Community West Bancshares

In related news, CEO James J. Kim purchased 1,600 shares of Community West Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.36 per share, for a total transaction of $27,776.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 60,178 shares in the company, valued at $1,044,690.08. This represents a 2.73 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Bartlein acquired 2,001 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.19 per share, with a total value of $34,397.19. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 440,877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,578,675.63. The trade was a 0.46 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 8,806 shares of company stock worth $156,205 in the last quarter. 10.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on CWBC. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Community West Bancshares from $22.00 to $19.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. StockNews.com raised Community West Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Community West Bancshares from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Community West Bancshares from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Community West Bancshares Stock Down 0.6 %

CWBC opened at $17.95 on Friday. Community West Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $15.57 and a fifty-two week high of $22.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $342.14 million, a P/E ratio of 34.52 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average is $17.49 and its 200 day moving average is $18.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Community West Bancshares (NASDAQ:CWBC) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.02). Community West Bancshares had a return on equity of 7.90% and a net margin of 4.59%. The firm had revenue of $34.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.05 million. Research analysts expect that Community West Bancshares will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Community West Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.67%. Community West Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.85%.

Community West Bancshares Profile

Community West Bancshares operates as the bank holding company for Community West Bank, N.A. that provides various financial products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market accounts, and fixed rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposits; and cash management products.