Fulton Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FULT) Short Interest Update

Fulton Financial Co. (NASDAQ:FULT) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,940,000 shares, a growth of 5.7% from the September 15th total of 5,620,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,530,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Fulton Financial Stock Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ FULT traded down $0.23 on Thursday, reaching $18.43. The company had a trading volume of 1,945,484 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,470,096. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company’s fifty day moving average is $18.08 and its 200 day moving average is $17.26. Fulton Financial has a 52-week low of $11.99 and a 52-week high of $20.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 0.73.

Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The bank reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.06. Fulton Financial had a net margin of 17.93% and a return on equity of 11.29%. The company had revenue of $487.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $321.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Fulton Financial will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fulton Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.69%. Fulton Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Fulton Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Fulton Financial from $18.50 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.40.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fulton Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in Fulton Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $46,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Fulton Financial by 21.9% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,840 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 691 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Fulton Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $66,000. AE Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fulton Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $172,000. Finally, Atwater Malick LLC purchased a new stake in Fulton Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $175,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.02% of the company’s stock.

Fulton Financial Company Profile

Fulton Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company that provides consumer and commercial banking products and services in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia. It accepts various checking accounts and savings deposit products, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.