Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) Upgraded at Stephens

Stephens upgraded shares of Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on MBWM. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Mercantile Bank from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Hovde Group increased their price objective on Mercantile Bank from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Piper Sandler set a $57.00 target price on Mercantile Bank in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Raymond James Financial set a $57.00 target price on Mercantile Bank in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Mercantile Bank in a report on Monday, December 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.20.

Mercantile Bank Stock Up 1.0%

MBWM stock opened at $49.78 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $859.70 million, a PE ratio of 9.12 and a beta of 0.89. Mercantile Bank has a one year low of $37.76 and a one year high of $55.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $51.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.47.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $62.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.25 million. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 23.87% and a return on equity of 13.54%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mercantile Bank will post 4.83 EPS for the current year.

Mercantile Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is an increase from Mercantile Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. Mercantile Bank’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Institutional Trading of Mercantile Bank

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Mercantile Bank in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $14,181,000. Tributary Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 92.6% in the third quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 497,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,383,000 after buying an additional 239,193 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Mercantile Bank by 73.1% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 155,904 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,236,000 after buying an additional 65,823 shares during the last quarter. Siena Capital Partners GP LLC raised its stake in shares of Mercantile Bank by 319.8% during the 4th quarter. Siena Capital Partners GP LLC now owns 83,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,039,000 after buying an additional 63,966 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 201,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,077,000 after buying an additional 54,373 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.63% of the company’s stock.

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.