Enterprise Financial Services Corporation $EFSC Shares Sold by Vest Financial LLC

Key Points

• Vest Financial LLC cut its Enterprise Financial Services stake by 45.6% in the third quarter, selling 27,490 shares and retaining 32,843 shares. Institutional investors collectively own 72.21% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $70, compared with the stock’s recent price of $61.35.
• Enterprise Financial Services reported quarterly EPS of $1.17, below the $1.38 consensus estimate, while revenue was nearly in line with expectations. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.36 from $0.35, implying a 2.3% annualized yield.

Vest Financial LLC lowered its position in Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC - Free Report) by 45.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,843 shares of the bank's stock after selling 27,490 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.09% of Enterprise Financial Services worth $1,936,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 57.5% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,216 shares of the bank's stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 56.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 564 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 66.3% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 850 shares of the bank's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $509,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 221.4% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 16,037 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,057,000 after purchasing an additional 11,047 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFSC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Enterprise Financial Services in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Piper Sandler raised Enterprise Financial Services from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Enterprise Financial Services from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Stephens started coverage on Enterprise Financial Services in a research report on Friday, September 18th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Enterprise Financial Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Enterprise Financial Services currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $70.00.

Enterprise Financial Services Stock Up 0.6%

EFSC stock opened at $61.35 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. Enterprise Financial Services Corporation has a one year low of $51.18 and a one year high of $68.73. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $61.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.21.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.21). Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 18.83% and a return on equity of 9.52%. The business had revenue of $192.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $193.09 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Enterprise Financial Services Corporation will post 5.27 EPS for the current year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This is an increase from Enterprise Financial Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. Enterprise Financial Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.83%.

About Enterprise Financial Services

Enterprise Financial Services Corp. is a financial holding company headquartered in Clayton, Missouri. Its principal subsidiary, Enterprise Bank & Trust, provides banking and financial services to businesses, professionals, institutions and individuals.

The company offers commercial and small-business lending, deposit accounts, treasury management, private banking, wealth management, trust and estate services, and other financial solutions. Its commercial banking capabilities include financing for working capital, equipment, real estate and business expansion.

Enterprise Bank & Trust serves customers through banking markets that include St.

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