Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Decreases Holdings in Enterprise Financial Services Corporation $EFSC

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP sold 48,385 shares of Enterprise Financial Services, reducing their stake by 2.2%, leaving them with approximately 2.17 million shares valued at $116.45 million.
• Enterprise Financial Services announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.31 per share, reflecting a positive change from the previous $0.30, with a 2.0% dividend yield.
• The stock has recently been upgraded to an average rating of "Buy" from various analysts, despite a price target decrease from some firms, indicating continued investor interest.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC - Free Report) by 2.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,166,983 shares of the bank's stock after selling 48,385 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 5.87% of Enterprise Financial Services worth $116,452,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 51.7% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 775 shares of the bank's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 4.1% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,640 shares of the bank's stock worth $411,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd grew its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 5,714 shares of the bank's stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 83.6% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,252 shares of the bank's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $69.00 to $66.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Enterprise Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Enterprise Financial Services presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael E. Finn bought 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $54.11 per share, for a total transaction of $81,165.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $162,330. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James Brian Lally sold 1,828 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.16, for a total transaction of $100,832.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 100,885 shares in the company, valued at $5,564,816.60. The trade was a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Enterprise Financial Services Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EFSC traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $61.31. The stock had a trading volume of 48,539 shares, compared to its average volume of 197,591. The company has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $56.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Enterprise Financial Services Corporation has a 1 year low of $45.22 and a 1 year high of $63.13.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $176.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $166.82 million. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 21.28% and a return on equity of 11.19%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Enterprise Financial Services Corporation will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Enterprise Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.53%.

Enterprise Financial Services 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.