Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Consensus "Hold": Five analysts cover EQBK (four hold, one buy) with an average 12‑month target of $51.33 and mixed recent revisions—from Piper Sandler's $58 "overweight" to DA Davidson's $47 "neutral".
• Mixed quarterly results: Equity Bancshares beat EPS estimates ($1.32 vs. $1.15) but missed revenue expectations ($83.26M vs. $85.24M), with a net margin of 6.15% and ROE of 13.43%; analysts forecast about $5.06 EPS for the year.
• Dividend and valuation: The company pays a $0.18 quarterly dividend ($0.72 annual, 1.6% yield) with a 57.1% payout ratio, and the stock trades near $45 with a market cap of ~$952M and a P/E of 36.00.

Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Hold" by the five brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $51.3333.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Equity Bancshares from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Equity Bancshares from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Equity Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Equity Bancshares from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research report on Friday, March 27th.

Equity Bancshares Stock Performance

Equity Bancshares stock opened at $45.36 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $44.91 and a 200-day moving average of $44.56. The company has a market capitalization of $952.17 million, a P/E ratio of 36.00 and a beta of 0.84. Equity Bancshares has a 1 year low of $36.04 and a 1 year high of $50.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.17. Equity Bancshares had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 13.43%. The business had revenue of $83.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $85.24 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Equity Bancshares will post 5.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Equity Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. Equity Bancshares's payout ratio is currently 57.14%.

Institutional Trading of Equity Bancshares

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EQBK. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Equity Bancshares by 282.0% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 680 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in shares of Equity Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Equity Bancshares by 132.0% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 972 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 553 shares during the period. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Bancshares during the second quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in Equity Bancshares by 233.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,925 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 1,347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.80% of the company's stock.

About Equity Bancshares

Equity Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Equity Bank, a regional financial services provider headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. As a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker EQBK, Equity Bancshares operates a network of branches and lending offices across Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Illinois and Colorado. Its geographic footprint spans both urban and rural markets, reflecting a focus on supporting small businesses, agricultural enterprises and individual consumers throughout the Midwest.

The company's core business activities encompass a full spectrum of commercial and consumer banking services.

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