Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) Shares Up 6.9% After Strong Earnings

Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM)’s share price traded up 6.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $47.50 and last traded at $47.26. 11,700 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 55,183 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.21.

The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.07. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 14.29%.

Mercantile Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This is a boost from Mercantile Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Mercantile Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Mercantile Bank from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Hovde Group upgraded shares of Mercantile Bank from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mercantile Bank news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 5,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.75, for a total transaction of $300,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,025,167.50. The trade was a 22.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,300 shares of company stock valued at $521,218. Insiders own 3.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MBWM. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Mercantile Bank by 99.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 32,981 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,441,000 after buying an additional 16,423 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 3.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 376,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,484,000 after acquiring an additional 14,202 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 132.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 21,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $938,000 after acquiring an additional 12,239 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 35.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 82,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,601,000 after acquiring an additional 21,411 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in Mercantile Bank by 83.7% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 31,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,368,000 after purchasing an additional 14,263 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.63% of the company’s stock.

Mercantile Bank Trading Down 1.1 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.39. The stock has a market cap of $774.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.69 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Mercantile Bank Company Profile

Mercantile Bank Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Mercantile Bank of Michigan that provides commercial and retail banking services to small- to medium-sized businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, and term certificate accounts; time deposits; and certificates of deposit.