Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM) Stake Boosted by LSV Asset Management

LSV Asset Management raised its position in Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM - Free Report) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 286,710 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 10,081 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 1.78% of Mercantile Bank worth $12,756,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Mercantile Bank in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 2,328 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Mercantile Bank in the 4th quarter valued at about $133,000. Sei Investments Co. bought a new stake in shares of Mercantile Bank during the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Mercantile Bank during the 3rd quarter valued at about $202,000. 58.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Mercantile Bank

In other news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.16, for a total value of $150,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,810 shares in the company, valued at $692,709.60. This represents a 17.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 7,750 shares of company stock valued at $382,695. Company insiders own 3.08% of the company's stock.

Mercantile Bank Stock Performance

NASDAQ MBWM traded up $0.37 on Friday, hitting $40.68. The stock had a trading volume of 52,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 66,400. The company's 50-day moving average is $44.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.77. Mercantile Bank Co. has a one year low of $33.64 and a one year high of $52.98. The stock has a market cap of $660.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.22 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.07. Mercantile Bank had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 21.99%. On average, analysts expect that Mercantile Bank Co. will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on MBWM shares. Hovde Group upgraded Mercantile Bank from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $54.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Mercantile Bank from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd.

Mercantile Bank 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.