Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 30,394 Shares of Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its position in Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,106,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 30,394 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 6.85% of Mercantile Bank worth $49,249,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MBWM. Barclays PLC grew its position in Mercantile Bank by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 39,878 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,774,000 after purchasing an additional 6,897 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Mercantile Bank by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 9,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 286,710 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,756,000 after buying an additional 10,081 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Mercantile Bank during the fourth quarter valued at $1,392,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Mercantile Bank by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 40,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,792,000 after acquiring an additional 1,654 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.63% of the company's stock.

Mercantile Bank Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MBWM traded down $0.37 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $43.26. The stock had a trading volume of 41,402 shares, compared to its average volume of 65,232. The stock has a market capitalization of $702.33 million, a P/E ratio of 8.74 and a beta of 0.87. Mercantile Bank Co. has a 1-year low of $35.61 and a 1-year high of $52.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $42.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.72.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $57.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $57.57 million. Mercantile Bank had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 21.99%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Mercantile Bank Co. will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mercantile Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Mercantile Bank's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.71%.

Insider Transactions at Mercantile Bank

In related news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.22, for a total value of $50,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $593,098.20. This trade represents a 7.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,500 shares of company stock valued at $73,033. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MBWM. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Mercantile Bank from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Hovde Group upgraded shares of Mercantile Bank from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $54.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Mercantile Bank from $50.00 to $47.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd.

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.