Wealth Forward LLC Cuts Stake in Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS)

Wealth Forward LLC cut its position in Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS) by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 50,279 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,200 shares during the period. Alerus Financial makes up about 0.8% of Wealth Forward LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Wealth Forward LLC owned about 0.25% of Alerus Financial worth $1,150,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Alerus Financial by 1.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 911,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,905,000 after buying an additional 13,637 shares during the last quarter. Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 34.0% in the second quarter. Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 288,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,665,000 after acquiring an additional 73,342 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 2.7% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 274,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,384,000 after acquiring an additional 7,300 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 4.5% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 123,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 5,323 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sippican Capital Advisors lifted its position in Alerus Financial by 4.8% during the third quarter. Sippican Capital Advisors now owns 80,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,842,000 after purchasing an additional 3,665 shares during the period. 51.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alerus Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ALRS opened at $20.23 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. Alerus Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $17.07 and a 52-week high of $25.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $400.11 million, a PE ratio of 57.80 and a beta of 0.66.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.18). Alerus Financial had a return on equity of 7.25% and a net margin of 2.39%. The firm had revenue of $80.58 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $52.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Alerus Financial Co. will post 1.21 EPS for the current year.

Alerus Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Alerus Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 228.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Alerus Financial from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Alerus Financial from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. DA Davidson raised their target price on Alerus Financial from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Alerus Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.20.

Alerus Financial Profile

Alerus Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Alerus Financial, National Association that engages in the provision of various financial services to businesses and consumers. The company operates in four segments: Banking, Mortgage, Retirement and Benefit Services, and Wealth Management.