Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 139,435 Shares of Alerus Financial $ALRS

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Alerus Financial by 13.2%, now owning 1,194,264 shares valued at approximately $22 million.
• In addition to Vanguard, other institutional investors have also significantly boosted their positions in Alerus Financial, with 51.25% of the stock owned by hedge funds and institutions.
• Alerus Financial reported $0.72 earnings per share in its latest quarterly results, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.56, and has received numerous upgrades from analysts, raising its target price to a consensus of $25.63.

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Free Report) by 13.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,194,264 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 139,435 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 4.71% of Alerus Financial worth $22,046,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Alerus Financial by 120.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 666,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,824,000 after acquiring an additional 363,617 shares during the period. Rhino Investment Partners Inc acquired a new position in Alerus Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $5,849,000. FJ Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Alerus Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,557,000. Choreo LLC increased its holdings in Alerus Financial by 112.1% during the 1st quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 285,815 shares of the company's stock worth $5,333,000 after purchasing an additional 151,045 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 135,474 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,607,000 after acquiring an additional 33,537 shares in the last quarter. 51.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALRS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut Alerus Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 17th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Alerus Financial from $24.00 to $25.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Alerus Financial from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Alerus Financial from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $27.00 price objective (up previously from $24.00) on shares of Alerus Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.63.

Alerus Financial Trading Down 0.0%

ALRS stock traded down $0.01 on Friday, hitting $22.27. 49,773 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 89,147. Alerus Financial has a twelve month low of $15.78 and a twelve month high of $24.41. The business's fifty day moving average is $21.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $565.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.16. Alerus Financial had a net margin of 11.06% and a return on equity of 10.21%. The firm had revenue of $74.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $69.96 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alerus Financial will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Alerus Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 26th. Alerus Financial's payout ratio is 49.70%.

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.