Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning.

EFSC has been the topic of several other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $69.00 to $66.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th.

Enterprise Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EFSC traded up $0.72 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $54.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 128,097 shares, compared to its average volume of 182,436. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $51.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Enterprise Financial Services has a 1-year low of $37.31 and a 1-year high of $63.13.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $18.48 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $162.83 million. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 20.12% and a return on equity of 10.94%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Enterprise Financial Services will post 4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Enterprise Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Enterprise Financial Services

In other Enterprise Financial Services news, Director Michael E. Finn bought 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $52.50 per share, with a total value of $78,750.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $78,750. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Brian Lally sold 4,689 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.18, for a total transaction of $258,739.02. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,902,825.32. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Enterprise Financial Services

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFSC. PL Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 5,540.0% during the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 39,695,956 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,238,852,000 after buying an additional 38,992,127 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Enterprise Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth approximately $22,901,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,314,377 shares of the bank's stock worth $124,375,000 after buying an additional 225,369 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Enterprise Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,556,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 430,662 shares of the bank's stock worth $24,289,000 after acquiring an additional 107,996 shares during the last quarter. 72.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Enterprise Financial Services

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.