Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) Hits New 52-Week High at $50.75

Shares of Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $50.75 and last traded at $50.75, with a volume of 21282 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott cut Mercantile Bank from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Mercantile Bank from $42.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $51.00 target price (up previously from $47.00) on shares of Mercantile Bank in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.00.

Mercantile Bank Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $803.58 million, a P/E ratio of 9.66 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.54.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. The firm had revenue of $88.56 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $56.23 million. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 23.99% and a return on equity of 15.80%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Mercantile Bank Co. will post 4.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercantile Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. This is a boost from Mercantile Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Mercantile Bank’s payout ratio is currently 27.13%.

Insider Activity at Mercantile Bank

In other news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.01, for a total value of $96,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 29,610 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,576.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.01, for a total transaction of $96,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 29,610 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,576.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.73, for a total transaction of $146,190.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 31,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,540,355.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 5,250 shares of company stock worth $252,168. 3.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in Mercantile Bank during the second quarter worth $28,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in Mercantile Bank during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Mercantile Bank by 104.1% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,772 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in Mercantile Bank during the first quarter worth $72,000. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in Mercantile Bank by 242.6% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 1,982 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.63% of the company’s stock.

About Mercantile Bank

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.