Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWBK) Short Interest Up 35.9% in May

Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWBK) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,500 shares, a growth of 35.9% from the May 15th total of 9,200 shares. Currently, 0.2% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 14,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days.

Hawthorn Bancshares Trading Up 1.0%

NASDAQ HWBK traded up $0.29 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $28.41. The stock had a trading volume of 4,134 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,728. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $197.33 million, a PE ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $29.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.94. Hawthorn Bancshares has a twelve month low of $19.50 and a twelve month high of $35.95.

Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter. Hawthorn Bancshares had a return on equity of 13.00% and a net margin of 16.65%. The firm had revenue of $18.76 million during the quarter.

Hawthorn Bancshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 15th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This is a boost from Hawthorn Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. Hawthorn Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.09%.

Hawthorn Bancshares announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, June 5th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hawthorn Bancshares

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,059 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. Citadel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $218,000. 683 Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $320,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,834 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in Hawthorn Bancshares in the 1st quarter valued at $457,000. 30.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut Hawthorn Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th.

Hawthorn Bancshares Company Profile

Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hawthorn Bank that provides various banking services in the United States. It accepts checking, savings, money market, individual retirement, and other time deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also offers commercial and industrial, single payment personal, installment, commercial and residential real estate, and consumer loans, as well as equipment, operating, and small business administration loans; and debit and credit cards.