First Financial Northwest, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFNW) Short Interest Up 28.2% in May

First Financial Northwest, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFNW) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 93,600 shares, a growth of 28.2% from the April 30th total of 73,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 28,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on First Financial Northwest in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. They issued a “sell” rating for the company.

First Financial Northwest Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FFNW traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $21.25. The company had a trading volume of 15,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,332. First Financial Northwest has a 1 year low of $10.09 and a 1 year high of $22.17. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $194.95 million, a P/E ratio of 64.39 and a beta of 0.53.

First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ:FFNW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The bank reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.21). First Financial Northwest had a return on equity of 1.94% and a net margin of 3.78%. The firm had revenue of $9.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.93 million. On average, analysts forecast that First Financial Northwest will post 0.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Northwest Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. First Financial Northwest’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 157.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Financial Northwest

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FFNW. Black Maple Capital Management LP raised its position in First Financial Northwest by 86.1% during the 4th quarter. Black Maple Capital Management LP now owns 97,183 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,310,000 after buying an additional 44,952 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Northwest by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC now owns 503,567 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,788,000 after acquiring an additional 30,468 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Northwest during the third quarter worth $324,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in First Financial Northwest by 6.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 368,446 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,575,000 after purchasing an additional 21,447 shares during the period. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Northwest in the fourth quarter valued at $117,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.00% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Northwest Company Profile

First Financial Northwest, Inc operates as the bank holding company for First Financial Northwest Bank that provides commercial banking services in Washington. The company offers a range of deposit products, including noninterest-bearing accounts, interest-bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit.