HomeStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:HMST) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

HomeStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:HMST) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 419,800 shares, a growth of 53.1% from the October 31st total of 274,200 shares. Currently, 2.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 147,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days.

HomeStreet Stock Up 3.7 %

Shares of HMST traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $11.88. 123,048 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 198,231. HomeStreet has a 12-month low of $6.48 and a 12-month high of $16.10. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.94. The company has a market cap of $224.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.82 and a beta of 1.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HMST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wedbush upgraded HomeStreet from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $12.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on HomeStreet in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded HomeStreet from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th.

Insider Activity at HomeStreet

In other HomeStreet news, EVP Godfrey B. Evans sold 4,636 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.55, for a total transaction of $53,545.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 67,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $774,415.95. This trade represents a 6.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John Michel sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.26, for a total value of $90,080.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 28,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $319,885.34. The trade was a 21.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HomeStreet

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HMST. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HomeStreet during the 2nd quarter worth about $122,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its stake in shares of HomeStreet by 23.2% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 14,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $164,000 after acquiring an additional 2,703 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of HomeStreet by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 1,354 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of HomeStreet by 276.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 23,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 17,578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of HomeStreet in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $410,000. 74.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About HomeStreet

HomeStreet, Inc operates as the bank holding company for HomeStreet Bank that provides commercial, mortgage, and consumer/retail banking services in the Western United States. The company offers personal and business checking, savings, interest-bearing negotiable order of withdrawal, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; credit cards; insurance; and treasury management services.