Ponce Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PDLB) Short Interest Up 22.1% in March

Ponce Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PDLB) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 304,803 shares, a growth of 22.1% from the February 26th total of 249,686 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 78,451 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ponce Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Informed Momentum Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ponce Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $1,169,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in Ponce Financial Group by 38.3% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 185,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,731,000 after acquiring an additional 51,500 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Ponce Financial Group by 72.3% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 120,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,969,000 after acquiring an additional 50,539 shares during the period. M3F Inc. boosted its position in Ponce Financial Group by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. M3F Inc. now owns 2,315,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,049,000 after purchasing an additional 48,887 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management purchased a new stake in Ponce Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $661,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ponce Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Zacks Research raised Ponce Financial Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Ponce Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Ponce Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PDLB stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $16.83. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 76,945. The stock has a market cap of $406.49 million, a PE ratio of 14.14 and a beta of 0.72. Ponce Financial Group has a 12-month low of $10.88 and a 12-month high of $18.01. The company has a 50 day moving average of $16.56 and a 200 day moving average of $15.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

Ponce Financial Group (NASDAQ:PDLB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $31.41 million during the quarter. Ponce Financial Group had a net margin of 14.72% and a return on equity of 9.52%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ponce Financial Group will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Ponce Financial Group

Ponce Financial Group, Inc (NASDAQ: PDLB) is a bank holding company based in Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiary, Banco Ponce, the company offers a range of commercial and retail banking services tailored to individuals, small businesses and corporate clients across the island.

The company’s core business activities include deposit-taking, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination and servicing, and treasury management solutions. In addition to traditional banking products, Ponce Financial Group provides cash management, electronic banking and wealth management services designed to support the financial needs of its diverse client base.

Ponce Financial Group operates exclusively in Puerto Rico, serving both urban and rural communities through its branch network.