Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) Sets New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ: EFSC) hit a new 52-week high of $67.53, reflecting strong recent momentum even though the stock later traded slightly below that peak.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with a Moderate Buy consensus and a price target of $66.75; several firms recently raised targets or maintained outperform ratings.
• The bank also delivered solid fundamentals, beating quarterly EPS and revenue expectations, and it raised its quarterly dividend to $0.34 per share, implying a 2.1% yield.

Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $67.53 and last traded at $66.2080, with a volume of 1176817 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $66.86.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on EFSC. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Enterprise Financial Services in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Enterprise Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Enterprise Financial Services from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Enterprise Financial Services from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Enterprise Financial Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.75.

Enterprise Financial Services Trading Down 1.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 12.47 and a beta of 0.80. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $60.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $57.86.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.01. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 19.81% and a return on equity of 10.35%. The business had revenue of $188.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $174.02 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Enterprise Financial Services Corporation will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is an increase from Enterprise Financial Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Enterprise Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.66%.

Insider Activity at Enterprise Financial Services

In other Enterprise Financial Services news, EVP Mark G. Ponder sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.55, for a total transaction of $75,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,526 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,424,499.30. This represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Enterprise Financial Services

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 58,539 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,146,000 after purchasing an additional 7,419 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 3.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 21,762 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,169,000 after buying an additional 698 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Enterprise Financial Services by 10.2% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 106,398 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,718,000 after acquiring an additional 9,816 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 25.1% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,398 shares of the bank's stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 46.1% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 25,082 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,348,000 after acquiring an additional 7,909 shares during the last quarter. 72.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Enterprise Financial Services Company Profile

Enterprise Financial Services Corp. NASDAQ: EFSC is a bank holding company headquartered in Clayton, Missouri, operating through its primary subsidiary, Enterprise Bank & Trust. The company provides a comprehensive range of banking and financial services to individuals, small- and mid-sized businesses, and institutional clients. Its capabilities encompass deposit products, lending solutions, mortgage banking, and treasury management, supported by a full suite of digital banking tools and personalized client service.

In its commercial banking segment, Enterprise Bank & Trust offers lines of credit, equipment financing, commercial real estate loans, construction lending and agriculture lending.

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