Short Interest in Orange County Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:OBT) Expands By 25.3%

Orange County Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:OBT) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 79,694 shares, an increase of 25.3% from the January 15th total of 63,594 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 35,120 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Approximately 0.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 0.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 35,120 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Orange County Bancorp

In other news, SVP David P. Dineen sold 1,000 shares of Orange County Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.81, for a total value of $28,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $236,645.34. This trade represents a 10.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 9.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Orange County Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OBT. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Orange County Bancorp by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 550,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,889,000 after buying an additional 8,793 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Orange County Bancorp by 29.8% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 319,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,262,000 after acquiring an additional 73,483 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Orange County Bancorp by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 258,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,385,000 after acquiring an additional 8,955 shares during the period. Fourthstone LLC purchased a new position in Orange County Bancorp in the second quarter worth $6,210,000. Finally, Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Orange County Bancorp in the second quarter worth $5,121,000. 42.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Orange County Bancorp Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of Orange County Bancorp stock traded up $0.30 on Monday, hitting $35.31. The company had a trading volume of 126,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 63,967. Orange County Bancorp has a 1 year low of $20.97 and a 1 year high of $36.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $30.19 and a 200-day moving average of $27.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $472.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.43.

Orange County Bancorp (NASDAQ:OBT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $33.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.40 million. Orange County Bancorp had a return on equity of 17.24% and a net margin of 26.32%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Orange County Bancorp will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Orange County Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 4th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This is an increase from Orange County Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 4th. Orange County Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on OBT. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Orange County Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Orange County Bancorp from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective (up previously from $32.00) on shares of Orange County Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Hovde Group upped their target price on Orange County Bancorp from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Orange County Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

About Orange County Bancorp

Orange County Bancorp, Inc (NASDAQ: OBT) is the bank holding company for Orange County Trust Bank, a community banking franchise headquartered in Goshen, New York. The company provides a full suite of financial services to individuals, small businesses and local organizations across Orange County and the surrounding Hudson Valley region.

Orange County Bancorp offers depository products that include checking and savings accounts, money market funds and certificates of deposit. On the lending side, the company extends commercial real estate and business loans, residential mortgage loans, consumer installment loans and home equity financing.