EMC Capital Management Has $84,000 Stake in Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM)

EMC Capital Management lessened its position in shares of Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM - Free Report) by 80.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,877 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,723 shares during the quarter. EMC Capital Management's holdings in Mercantile Bank were worth $84,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 3.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $376,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 0.5% during the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 75,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,310,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Mercantile Bank by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 11,864 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 16.1% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,249 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Finally, Semanteon Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 10.1% during the third quarter. Semanteon Capital Management LP now owns 5,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 528 shares in the last quarter. 58.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mercantile Bank Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of Mercantile Bank stock traded up $1.13 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $48.88. The stock had a trading volume of 14,137 shares, compared to its average volume of 69,681. 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 has a market capitalization of $789.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.88 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $46.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.68. Mercantile Bank Co. has a 52 week low of $33.46 and a 52 week high of $52.98.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.07. Mercantile Bank had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 21.99%. Sell-side analysts predict that Mercantile Bank Co. will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercantile Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This is a boost from Mercantile Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. Mercantile Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity at Mercantile Bank

In other news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.16, for a total value of $150,480.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $692,709.60. This represents a 17.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,050 shares of company stock valued at $808,490. 3.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.