Short Interest in MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCBS) Increases By 31.7%

MetroCity Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCBS) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 319,195 shares, a growth of 31.7% from the February 26th total of 242,410 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 90,183 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days.

MetroCity Bankshares Price Performance

NASDAQ MCBS traded down $0.28 on Friday, reaching $28.21. 105,416 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 137,834. The stock has a market cap of $811.04 million, a PE ratio of 10.73 and a beta of 0.72. MetroCity Bankshares has a 12 month low of $24.24 and a 12 month high of $31.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

MetroCity Bankshares (NASDAQ:MCBS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $43.74 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.50 million. MetroCity Bankshares had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 27.93%.

MetroCity Bankshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 4th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 4th. MetroCity Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MCBS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of MetroCity Bankshares from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded MetroCity Bankshares from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised MetroCity Bankshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MCBS. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in MetroCity Bankshares by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 1,373 shares during the period. Mariner LLC increased its stake in MetroCity Bankshares by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 14,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its position in MetroCity Bankshares by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 38,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,027,000 after purchasing an additional 6,194 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of MetroCity Bankshares by 716.2% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 6,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $171,000 after purchasing an additional 5,672 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of MetroCity Bankshares by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 445,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,819,000 after purchasing an additional 5,543 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.33% of the company’s stock.

MetroCity Bankshares Company Profile

MetroCity Bankshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Houston, Texas. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, MetroCity Bank, the company provides a range of banking and financial services to individuals and businesses. MetroCity Bankshares focuses on community banking, leveraging local expertise to support the financial needs of the greater Houston metropolitan area.

MetroCity Bank offers traditional deposit products, including checking and savings accounts, money market accounts and certificates of deposit.