Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) Given New $32.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Alerus Financial’s price target to $32 from $29 while maintaining a “market perform” rating; the new target implies 4.52% downside from the reported $33.52 share price.
• Alerus Financial exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.80 EPS versus the $0.78 consensus and $80 million in revenue versus the $76.99 million estimate.
• Analyst sentiment is moderately positive overall, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.75; institutional investors own 51.25% of the company.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $29.00 to $32.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "market perform" rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective indicates a potential downside of 4.52% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on ALRS. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alerus Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Alerus Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Alerus Financial from $28.50 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Alerus Financial from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Alerus Financial in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $34.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $31.75.

Alerus Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ ALRS opened at $33.52 on Friday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $30.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. Alerus Financial has a 1 year low of $20.26 and a 1 year high of $34.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $842.20 million, a PE ratio of 31.62 and a beta of 0.68.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $80.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.99 million. Alerus Financial had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 14.53%. Analysts predict that Alerus Financial will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alerus Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ALRS. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 2,222 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Alerus Financial by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,500 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Alerus Financial by 0.6% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 81,208 shares of the company's stock worth $1,925,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Alerus Financial by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC now owns 65,410 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,473,000 after buying an additional 505 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Alerus Financial by 4.2% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,420 shares of the company's stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 546 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 51.25% of the company's stock.

About Alerus Financial

Alerus Financial Corporation NASDAQ: ALRS is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The firm provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking products, including deposit accounts, lending solutions and treasury management services for individuals, small businesses and larger corporate clients. Through its community banking network, Alerus emphasizes local decision-making and personalized service to meet the needs of its varied client base.

In addition to traditional banking offerings, Alerus operates a national mortgage origination and servicing platform that delivers home purchase and refinance loans.

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