Short Interest in Chemung Financial Corp (NASDAQ:CHMG) Decreases By 15.1%

Chemung Financial Corp (NASDAQ:CHMG) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 24,158 shares, a decrease of 15.1% from the March 31st total of 28,471 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 4,850 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.0 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas R. Tyrrell sold 788 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.33, for a total transaction of $51,480.04. Following the sale, the director owned 8,050 shares in the company, valued at $525,906.50. This represents a 8.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel D. Fariello sold 748 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.13, for a total transaction of $45,725.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,110 shares in the company, valued at approximately $434,634.30. This trade represents a 9.52% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 4,611 shares of company stock worth $272,340 over the last quarter. 12.41% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PL Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Chemung Financial by 890.1% during the third quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 59,127 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,105,000 after acquiring an additional 53,155 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Chemung Financial by 168.1% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,630 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Chemung Financial by 108.1% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,084 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Chemung Financial by 81.1% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 920 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Chemung Financial by 90.8% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 895 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CHMG has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Chemung Financial from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Chemung Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chemung Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Chemung Financial in a research report on Friday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.00.

Chemung Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ CHMG opened at $66.09 on Friday. Chemung Financial has a 52 week low of $43.20 and a 52 week high of $70.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market cap of $318.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.44 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $57.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.99.

Chemung Financial (NASDAQ:CHMG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The bank reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.28. Chemung Financial had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 12.68%. The firm had revenue of $29.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $29.21 million. Analysts forecast that Chemung Financial will post 6.75 EPS for the current year.

Chemung Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th were given a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Chemung Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 35.88%.

About Chemung Financial

Chemung Financial Corporation serves as the bank holding company for Chemung Canal Trust Company, a community bank founded in 1833 and headquartered in Elmira, New York. With deep historical roots in the Southern Tier of New York, the company has expanded its footprint to serve customers throughout the region, including northern Pennsylvania. Chemung Financial emphasizes relationship-driven banking by combining personalized service with modern delivery channels.

Through its subsidiary, Chemung Canal Trust Company, Chemung Financial offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services.