PennyMac Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFSI) Short Interest Down 19.2% in November

PennyMac Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFSI) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 945,000 shares, a decrease of 19.2% from the November 15th total of 1,170,000 shares. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 277,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on PFSI. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on PennyMac Financial Services from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of PennyMac Financial Services from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of PennyMac Financial Services from $112.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of PennyMac Financial Services in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of PennyMac Financial Services from $112.00 to $111.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Steven Richard Bailey sold 14,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.88, for a total value of $1,651,514.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,670 shares in the company, valued at $1,714,629.60. This represents a 49.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David Spector sold 10,000 shares of PennyMac Financial Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.79, for a total value of $1,167,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 200,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,428,541.16. This trade represents a 4.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 78,162 shares of company stock worth $8,540,526. Corporate insiders own 16.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PennyMac Financial Services

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in PennyMac Financial Services during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of PennyMac Financial Services by 1,529.6% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 440 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in PennyMac Financial Services by 20.3% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,340 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $153,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in PennyMac Financial Services by 23.7% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 1,516 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $173,000 after buying an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new position in PennyMac Financial Services in the 3rd quarter worth about $203,000. 57.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PennyMac Financial Services Stock Performance

PFSI traded down $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $104.45. The stock had a trading volume of 160,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 255,696. PennyMac Financial Services has a 1 year low of $81.93 and a 1 year high of $119.13. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $104.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $101.68. The stock has a market cap of $5.35 billion, a PE ratio of 33.16 and a beta of 1.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.75.

PennyMac Financial Services (NYSE:PFSI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.92 by ($1.62). The business had revenue of $411.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $513.12 million. PennyMac Financial Services had a net margin of 11.45% and a return on equity of 15.13%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.77 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that PennyMac Financial Services will post 11.88 earnings per share for the current year.

PennyMac Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. PennyMac Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.10%.

About PennyMac Financial Services

PennyMac Financial Services, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the mortgage banking and investment management activities in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Production, Servicing, and Investment Management. The Production segment is involved in the origination, acquisition, and sale of loans.