Barclays PLC Grows Stock Holdings in Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM)

Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM - Free Report) by 99.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,981 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,423 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.20% of Mercantile Bank worth $1,441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MBWM. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted 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. boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 18.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 308,849 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,530,000 after purchasing an additional 47,528 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 20,465 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 46.9% during the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 55,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,417,000 after purchasing an additional 17,649 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 119.3% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 29,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 16,115 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.63% of the company's stock.

Mercantile Bank Stock Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ MBWM traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $42.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 68,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 64,563. Mercantile Bank Co. has a 52 week low of $33.46 and a 52 week high of $52.98. The company has a market capitalization of $681.35 million, a PE ratio of 8.48 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $47.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.16.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 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 firm had revenue of $93.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $56.83 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Mercantile Bank Co. will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Mercantile Bank

In other news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 5,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.75, for a total transaction of $300,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,810 shares in the company, valued at $1,025,167.50. This trade represents a 22.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 10,300 shares of company stock worth $521,218 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.