Kingstone Cos. price rise prompts temporary halt

Trading was halted briefly Monday in shares of Kingstone Companies, a Hewlett-based insurance provider, after its price surged 27 percent to $5.97.

Chief executive Barry B. Goldstein said in an interview he could not explain the run-up, which led to the automatic shutdown by the Nasdaq Market at 11:53 a.m. Trading resumed after about 10 minutes.

“We’ve had great earnings,” he said. “It was a three-day weekend. Maybe people took the time to read what’s going on.”

Kingstone announced May 15 that its first quarter net income had risen more than fivefold from the previous quarter to more than $765,000 on revenue of $7.4 million or 20 cents a share.

In late afternoon trading, the stock had pared some of its gains, and was at $4.62, up 20 cents.

Kingstone’s stock has closed between $2.47 and $5 over the past 52 weeks.

Kingstone Companies Inc. is the parent of Kingstone Insurance Company Inc., which was founded in 1886 in Kingston, N.Y., according to the parent company’s website. It is a regional provider of insurance products for individuals and small and midsized businesses.

Its last SEC filing, on May 23, was to disclose the purchase by Goldstein of 1,000 shares at $4.33 a share.