Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Hold" from the five brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $23.20.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ALRS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Alerus Financial from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Raymond James raised 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. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Alerus Financial from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on Alerus Financial from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st.

Alerus Financial Stock Up 6.8 %

Shares of ALRS traded up $1.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $22.33. 236,433 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 59,385. The company has a market capitalization of $565.80 million, a P/E ratio of 140.63 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Alerus Financial has a 52 week low of $17.35 and a 52 week high of $25.85. The company's 50 day moving average is $22.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.92.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) last issued 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 6.02% and a net margin of 1.01%. The business had revenue of $80.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $52.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alerus Financial will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Alerus Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 11th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Alerus Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 500.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alerus Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALRS. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 380.7% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,519 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Alerus Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $142,000. Bailard Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alerus Financial in the second quarter worth $265,000. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial during the third quarter worth $417,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 4,147.8% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 26,294 shares of the company's stock valued at $573,000 after buying an additional 25,675 shares during the last quarter. 51.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alerus Financial Company 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.