Analysts Set Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:MBWM) PT at $54.50

Shares of Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:MBWM) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $55.00.

MBWM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded Mercantile Bank from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $52.00 target price (down previously from $55.00) on shares of Mercantile Bank in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mercantile Bank in a research report on Monday. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of Mercantile Bank from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Nelson F. Sanchez acquired 1,000 shares of Mercantile Bank stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $43.50 per share, for a total transaction of $43,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $152,337. This trade represents a 39.97% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mercantile Bank

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 16.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,017,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,182,000 after acquiring an additional 147,299 shares during the last quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC grew its position in Mercantile Bank by 92.6% in the 3rd quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 497,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,383,000 after purchasing an additional 239,193 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mercantile Bank by 9.2% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 494,367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,247,000 after purchasing an additional 41,540 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 4.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 405,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,839,000 after buying an additional 17,580 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 37.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 214,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,659,000 after buying an additional 58,743 shares during the period. 58.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercantile Bank Price Performance

MBWM opened at $49.51 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $804.54 million, a P/E ratio of 9.38 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50-day moving average of $45.97 and a 200-day moving average of $46.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.98. Mercantile Bank has a 1-year low of $37.76 and a 1-year high of $51.89.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.08. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 23.05% and a return on equity of 13.78%. The business had revenue of $62.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $61.33 million. Equities analysts expect that Mercantile Bank will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercantile Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. Mercantile Bank’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.79%.

About Mercantile Bank

Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ: MBWM) is the bank holding company for Mercantile Bank of Michigan, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Through its state-chartered subsidiary, the company provides a broad range of financial products and services to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and consumers across West and Central Michigan.

The bank’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside commercial and consumer loan portfolios.