Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Brookline Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:BRKL) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,410,000 shares, a growth of 15.6% from the March 31st total of 1,220,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 449,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BRKL shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Brookline Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Brookline Bancorp from $12.00 to $10.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Brookline Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $11.08.

Institutional Trading of Brookline Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Brookline Bancorp by 12.6% in the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 50,002 shares of the bank’s stock worth $498,000 after purchasing an additional 5,598 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Brookline Bancorp by 14.5% in the first quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 315,000 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,137,000 after purchasing an additional 40,000 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Brookline Bancorp by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,091,274 shares of the bank’s stock worth $110,096,000 after purchasing an additional 32,790 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Brookline Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $1,881,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Brookline Bancorp by 106.6% during the fourth quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 31,198 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 16,094 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.91% of the company’s stock.

Brookline Bancorp Stock Down 0.6 %

BRKL stock opened at $8.30 on Wednesday. Brookline Bancorp has a twelve month low of $7.00 and a twelve month high of $11.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $744.10 million, a P/E ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 0.75. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.78.

Brookline Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.135 per share. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.51%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Brookline Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 58.07%.

Brookline Bancorp Company Profile

Brookline Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for the Brookline Bank that provide commercial, business, and retail banking services to corporate, municipal, and retail customers in the United States. Its deposit products include demand checking, NOW, money market, and savings accounts. The company's loan portfolio primarily comprises first mortgage loans secured by commercial, multi-family, and residential real estate properties; loans to business entities comprising commercial lines of credit; loans to condominium associations; loans and leases used to finance equipment for small businesses; financing for construction and development projects; and home equity and other consumer loans.