Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 95,500 shares, a decrease of 14.1% from the November 30th total of 111,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 10,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.8 days.

Institutional Trading of Middlefield Banc

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Middlefield Banc by 104.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,117 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Middlefield Banc by 5.1% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,536 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 804 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Middlefield Banc during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $225,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Middlefield Banc by 127.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 12,180 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $351,000 after purchasing an additional 6,832 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Middlefield Banc by 69.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,916 shares of the bank’s stock worth $487,000 after buying an additional 6,918 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

Middlefield Banc Price Performance

NASDAQ MBCN opened at $28.15 on Monday. Middlefield Banc has a 12-month low of $20.61 and a 12-month high of $34.40. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $227.20 million, a P/E ratio of 15.99 and a beta of 0.69.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.18). Middlefield Banc had a net margin of 13.31% and a return on equity of 6.86%. The business had revenue of $16.82 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.10 million. Analysts forecast that Middlefield Banc will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlefield Banc Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Middlefield Banc’s payout ratio is currently 45.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Middlefield Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Middlefield Banc from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

About Middlefield Banc

Middlefield Banc Corp. operates as the bank holding company for The Middlefield Banking Company that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, small business owners, and retail customers in northeastern and central Ohio. It offers checking, savings, negotiable order of withdrawal accounts, money market accounts, time certificates of deposit, commercial loans, real estate loans, various consumer loans, safe deposit facilities, and travelers' checks.