Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus "Moderate Buy": Seven brokerages cover Alerus Financial with an average 12‑month target of $26.00 (five hold, two strong buy).
• Quarterly beat: Alerus reported EPS of $0.85 versus $0.57 expected and revenue of $77.07M versus $71.43M, with analysts forecasting about 2.14 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Dividend yield and payout risk: The company declared a $0.21 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.84, ~3.5% yield), but the dividend payout ratio is high at ~127%, which may raise sustainability concerns.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $26.00.

A number of research firms recently commented on ALRS. Zacks Research upgraded Alerus Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Raymond James Financial set a $29.00 target price on Alerus Financial and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Hovde Group downgraded Alerus Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. DA Davidson raised their price target on Alerus Financial from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Alerus Financial from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th.

Alerus Financial Price Performance

Shares of ALRS stock traded down $0.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $23.70. The company had a trading volume of 14,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 137,812. The stock's 50-day moving average is $24.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $601.98 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.90 and a beta of 0.63. Alerus Financial has a 52 week low of $15.78 and a 52 week high of $26.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $77.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $71.43 million. Alerus Financial had a return on equity of 13.18% and a net margin of 4.36%. As a group, analysts predict that Alerus Financial will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alerus Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 27th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Alerus Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 127.27%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Alerus Financial by 50.0% during 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 in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Alerus Financial by 90.1% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 51.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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