Jane Street Group LLC Buys 16,115 Shares of Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM)

Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM - Free Report) by 119.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,115 shares during the quarter. Jane Street Group LLC owned 0.18% of Mercantile Bank worth $1,295,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Mercantile Bank by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 75,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,310,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP raised its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 46.9% during the third quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 55,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,417,000 after buying an additional 17,649 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 77.6% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,402 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $324,000 after purchasing an additional 3,235 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Mercantile Bank by 95.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 13,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $584,000 after purchasing an additional 6,531 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Mercantile Bank during the third quarter valued at approximately $89,000. 58.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mercantile Bank Stock Performance

Shares of Mercantile Bank stock traded down $0.78 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $44.78. The company had a trading volume of 45,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 68,917. Mercantile Bank Co. has a 1-year low of $33.46 and a 1-year high of $52.98. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $47.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.63. The stock has a market cap of $722.84 million, a PE ratio of 8.99 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.04. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 22.77% and a return on equity of 14.59%. The company had revenue of $93.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $56.83 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.30 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mercantile Bank Co. will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercantile Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Mercantile Bank's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Mercantile Bank from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Activity

In other Mercantile Bank news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 5,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.75, for a total value of $300,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,025,167.50. This trade represents a 22.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,550 shares of company stock worth $531,660. Company insiders own 3.08% of the company's stock.

Mercantile Bank Company Profile

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.