Two Sigma Investments LP Increases Stock Position in Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS)

Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS - Free Report) by 34.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,188 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,360 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP owned about 0.27% of Alerus Financial worth $1,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ALRS. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 457.6% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,277 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,025 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 31.9% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,349 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of Alerus Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 41.7% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 6,451 shares of the company's stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares during the period. 51.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ALRS shares. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Alerus Financial from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Alerus Financial from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th.

Alerus Financial Price Performance

ALRS traded up $0.29 on Friday, hitting $21.35. 53,094 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 74,543. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The business's fifty day moving average is $19.41 and its 200 day moving average is $19.94. Alerus Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $15.78 and a fifty-two week high of $24.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $541.56 million, a P/E ratio of 20.93 and a beta of 0.70.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.13. Alerus Financial had a net margin of 6.26% and a return on equity of 7.66%. The company had revenue of $68.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $66.20 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alerus Financial Co. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Alerus Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. This is an increase from Alerus Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. Alerus Financial's dividend payout ratio is 68.85%.

About Alerus Financial

Alerus Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Alerus Financial, National Association that engages in the provision of various financial services to businesses and consumers. The company operates in four segments: Banking, Mortgage, Retirement and Benefit Services, and Wealth Management.