Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) Short Interest Up 102.3% in June

Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 739,835 shares, a growth of 102.3% from the June 15th total of 365,748 shares. Currently, 4.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 203,247 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EQBK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Hovde Group initiated coverage on shares of Equity Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $51.00 price objective on the stock. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Equity Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “buy” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Equity Bancshares presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Donald Scott Rogerson purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $45.93 per share, with a total value of $91,860.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $229,650. This trade represents a 66.67% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Brett A. Reber sold 1,686 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.85, for a total value of $80,675.10. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 34,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,650,585.75. The trade was a 4.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 14.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Equity Bancshares

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Equity Bancshares by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,930,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,216,000 after acquiring an additional 44,681 shares during the period. FJ Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Equity Bancshares by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 1,222,791 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,768,000 after purchasing an additional 96,695 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Partners GP II L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Equity Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at $49,541,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equity Bancshares by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 921,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,518,000 after buying an additional 22,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Equity Bancshares by 0.5% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 761,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,974,000 after buying an additional 3,765 shares during the period. 71.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EQBK traded up $0.11 on Wednesday, hitting $49.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 205,157 shares, compared to its average volume of 116,330. The company has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.95 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. Equity Bancshares has a 12 month low of $36.04 and a 12 month high of $51.48. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $46.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.02.

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $81.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $85.10 million. Equity Bancshares had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 12.85%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Equity Bancshares will post 5.06 EPS for the current year.

Equity Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Equity Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.14%.

Equity Bancshares Company Profile

Equity Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Equity Bank, a regional financial services provider headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. As a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker EQBK, Equity Bancshares operates a network of branches and lending offices across Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Illinois and Colorado. Its geographic footprint spans both urban and rural markets, reflecting a focus on supporting small businesses, agricultural enterprises and individual consumers throughout the Midwest.

The company’s core business activities encompass a full spectrum of commercial and consumer banking services.