Short Interest in ChoiceOne Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:COFS) Declines By 34.6%

ChoiceOne Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:COFS) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 143,866 shares, a decrease of 34.6% from the December 15th total of 220,050 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 122,657 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.2 days. Based on an average trading volume of 122,657 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.2 days. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

ChoiceOne Financial Services Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:COFS opened at $28.53 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $30.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.64. The company has a market cap of $428.52 million, a PE ratio of 20.82 and a beta of 0.61. ChoiceOne Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $24.89 and a fifty-two week high of $35.40.

ChoiceOne Financial Services (NASDAQ:COFS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $44.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.15 million. ChoiceOne Financial Services had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 11.52%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ChoiceOne Financial Services will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

ChoiceOne Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. This is an increase from ChoiceOne Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. ChoiceOne Financial Services’s payout ratio is 84.67%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Eric E. Burrough acquired 5,000 shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.50 per share, for a total transaction of $142,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 174,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,982,740.50. This trade represents a 2.94% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in COFS. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at $185,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in ChoiceOne Financial Services by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 59,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,709,000 after buying an additional 4,982 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 20,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after buying an additional 3,112 shares in the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth about $334,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $875,000 after acquiring an additional 8,427 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COFS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Hovde Group downgraded shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of ChoiceOne Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, December 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.00.

ChoiceOne Financial Services Company Profile

ChoiceOne Financial Services, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Jackson, Michigan. Through its subsidiary, ChoiceOne Bank, it provides a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals, families, and businesses. The company’s primary operations are concentrated in community banking, spanning retail deposits, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination, and treasury management solutions.

ChoiceOne Bank offers checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and online and mobile banking platforms designed to meet the needs of its customers.