Mercantile Bank Corporation $MBWM Stock Holdings Lifted by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Mercantile Bank Corporation by 9.4% during Q1, now owning 426,625 shares valued at approximately $18.5 million.
• Wall Street analysts have raised their target prices for Mercantile Bank, with Piper Sandler and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods recently setting targets at $56.00, indicating a positive outlook.
• Mercantile Bank has announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.38 per share, reflecting a 3.1% yield, with the dividend to be paid on September 17th.

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:MBWM - Free Report) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 426,625 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 36,677 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 2.63% of Mercantile Bank worth $18,533,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Mercantile Bank during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,209,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in Mercantile Bank by 24.9% during the first quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 57,294 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,489,000 after purchasing an additional 11,425 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 16.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,017,076 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,182,000 after acquiring an additional 147,299 shares during the last quarter. West Michigan Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mercantile Bank during the first quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 12.1% during the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 321,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,965,000 after acquiring an additional 34,776 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.63% of the company's stock.

Mercantile Bank Trading Down 0.2%

Mercantile Bank stock traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $49.71. The stock had a trading volume of 58,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 69,109. Mercantile Bank Corporation has a twelve month low of $37.76 and a twelve month high of $52.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $807.79 million, a PE ratio of 9.86 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $47.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.27.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.16. Mercantile Bank had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 22.11%.The company had revenue of $60.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.02 million. Analysts expect that Mercantile Bank Corporation will post 4.83 EPS for the current year.

Mercantile Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This is an increase from Mercantile Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Mercantile Bank's payout ratio is presently 29.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MBWM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Mercantile Bank from $47.50 to $56.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial upgraded Mercantile Bank from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $55.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Mercantile Bank from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three equities research 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.25.

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.