Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) Stock Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) shares recently traded above its 200-day moving average of $54.96, reaching a high of $57.64 during trading.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on the company, with DA Davidson reducing their price target from $70.00 to $65.00 while Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from "sell" to "hold."
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.30 to $0.31, reflecting a 2.2% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 22.77%.

Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $54.96 and traded as high as $57.64. Enterprise Financial Services shares last traded at $57.52, with a volume of 97,767 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EFSC has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $69.00 to $66.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th.

Enterprise Financial Services Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average is $55.67 and its 200-day moving average is $54.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 0.90.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.17. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 21.28% and a return on equity of 11.19%. The business had revenue of $176.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $166.82 million. On average, research analysts expect that Enterprise Financial Services Corporation will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Enterprise Financial Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Enterprise Financial Services's payout ratio is 22.77%.

Insider Activity at Enterprise Financial Services

In related news, CEO James Brian Lally sold 1,828 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.16, for a total value of $100,832.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 100,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,564,816.60. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael E. Finn purchased 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $54.11 per share, for a total transaction of $81,165.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 3,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $162,330. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Enterprise Financial Services

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 6,963 shares of the bank's stock worth $393,000 after buying an additional 915 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 101,216 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,709,000 after buying an additional 3,448 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 125,154 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,059,000 after buying an additional 4,641 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 82,228 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,638,000 after buying an additional 4,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services in the fourth quarter worth $1,072,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.21% of the company's stock.

Enterprise Financial Services Company Profile

Enterprise Financial Services Corp operates as the holding company for Enterprise Bank & Trust that offers banking and wealth management services to individuals and corporate customers primarily in Arizona, California, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, and New Mexico. It provides checking, savings, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit.