ECB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECBK) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

ECB Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECBK) was the target of a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,700 shares, an increase of 13.0% from the May 15th total of 7,700 shares. Approximately 0.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 5,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days.

ECB Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ECBK traded down $0.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.37. The stock had a trading volume of 400 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,587. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. ECB Bancorp has a 1 year low of $9.82 and a 1 year high of $13.63. The company has a market capitalization of $114.05 million, a PE ratio of 25.78 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.69.

ECB Bancorp (NASDAQ:ECBK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter. ECB Bancorp had a return on equity of 2.53% and a net margin of 7.01%. The company had revenue of $6.21 million for the quarter.

Insider Transactions at ECB Bancorp

In related news, Director Paul A. Delory sold 5,052 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.52, for a total value of $58,199.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,682.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO John A. Citrano purchased 4,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $12.21 per share, with a total value of $58,608.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 44,201 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $539,694.21. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Paul A. Delory sold 5,052 shares of ECB Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.52, for a total value of $58,199.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,212 shares in the company, valued at $140,682.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 6,100 shares of company stock valued at $74,231 in the last ninety days. 6.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of ECB Bancorp

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Minerva Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ECB Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth $224,000. Grimes & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ECB Bancorp by 28.6% in the 4th quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,000 after acquiring an additional 4,445 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sachetta LLC purchased a new position in shares of ECB Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,345,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 30.27% of the company’s stock.

About ECB Bancorp

ECB Bancorp, Inc operating as a holding company for Everett Co-operative Bank that provides various banking products and services. The company accepts various deposit products, including certificate of deposit accounts, IRAs, money market accounts, savings accounts, demand deposit accounts, and interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing checking accounts.