Colony Bankcorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBAN) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Colony Bankcorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBAN) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 86,100 shares, an increase of 10.1% from the August 31st total of 78,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 57,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days.

Colony Bankcorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CBAN traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $15.24. 19,229 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 43,107. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Colony Bankcorp has a twelve month low of $9.35 and a twelve month high of $15.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $14.61 and a 200 day moving average of $12.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $267.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.57.

Colony Bankcorp (NASDAQ:CBAN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. Colony Bankcorp had a net margin of 13.03% and a return on equity of 9.09%. The business had revenue of $42.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.33 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Colony Bankcorp will post 1.33 EPS for the current year.

Colony Bankcorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were given a $0.112 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 7th. This represents a $0.45 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. Colony Bankcorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.00%.

Institutional Trading of Colony Bankcorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Colony Bankcorp by 8.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 508,394 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,228,000 after buying an additional 38,457 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Colony Bankcorp by 44.4% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 44,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $513,000 after acquiring an additional 13,701 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Colony Bankcorp by 47.9% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 36,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 11,746 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in Colony Bankcorp in the second quarter worth about $139,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Colony Bankcorp in the first quarter worth about $123,000. 50.37% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Colony Bankcorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th.

About Colony Bankcorp

Colony Bankcorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Colony Bank that provides various banking products and services to commercial and consumer customers. The company offers deposit products, including demand, savings, and time deposits. It also provides loans to small and medium-sized businesses; residential and commercial construction, and land development loans; commercial real estate loans; commercial loans; agri-business and production loans; residential mortgage loans; home equity loans; and consumer loans.