Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM) Short Interest Update

Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 137,300 shares, a drop of 13.9% from the August 31st total of 159,400 shares. Approximately 0.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 75,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on MBWM. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Mercantile Bank from $42.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $51.00 target price (up from $47.00) on shares of Mercantile Bank in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael H. Price sold 5,000 shares of Mercantile Bank stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total value of $227,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $982,306.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 stock was 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 directly owns 29,610 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,576.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Michael H. Price sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.57, for a total transaction of $227,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $982,306.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,500 shares of company stock valued at $490,933 over the last 90 days. 3.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercantile Bank

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 108.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 174,355 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,074,000 after purchasing an additional 90,802 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 18.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 308,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,530,000 after buying an additional 47,528 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in shares of Mercantile Bank by 15.4% in the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 260,129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,553,000 after acquiring an additional 34,725 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 805,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,997,000 after acquiring an additional 21,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in Mercantile Bank by 218.8% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 29,820 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,210,000 after acquiring an additional 20,465 shares during the last quarter. 58.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mercantile Bank Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of MBWM stock opened at $42.56 on Friday. Mercantile Bank has a one year low of $30.12 and a one year high of $51.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $44.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.41. The stock has a market cap of $686.11 million, a P/E ratio of 8.25 and a beta of 0.96.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. The company had revenue of $88.56 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.23 million. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 23.99% and a return on equity of 15.52%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.27 EPS. Analysts predict that Mercantile Bank will post 4.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Mercantile Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. This is an increase from Mercantile Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. Mercantile Bank’s payout ratio is presently 27.91%.

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.