Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN) Short Interest Down 20.0% in December

Middlefield Banc Corp. (NASDAQ:MBCN) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 76,400 shares, a decline of 20.0% from the December 15th total of 95,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 11,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.8 days.

Middlefield Banc Price Performance

Shares of MBCN stock traded down $0.38 on Friday, reaching $25.00. 6,912 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,737. The company has a market cap of $201.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.20 and a beta of 0.71. Middlefield Banc has a 1 year low of $20.61 and a 1 year high of $34.00. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $29.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Middlefield Banc (NASDAQ:MBCN) last issued its 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 analyst estimates of $17.10 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Middlefield Banc will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middlefield Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Middlefield Banc’s payout ratio is currently 45.45%.

Institutional Trading of Middlefield Banc

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MBCN. Keeler & Nadler Financial Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new position in Middlefield Banc in the fourth quarter valued at about $282,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Middlefield Banc by 127.7% in the third 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 during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlefield Banc by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 165,355 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,763,000 after buying an additional 1,368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Middlefield Banc by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 102,516 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,952,000 after buying an additional 963 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 31.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Middlefield Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price 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.