Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) Reaches New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Merchants Bancorp reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $48.90 and last at $49.02 on volume of 27,854 shares, up about 3.8%.
• The company posted an earnings beat with Q results of $1.28 EPS versus $0.94 expected and revenue of $185.29M vs. $170.8M, with a 13.17% ROE and a 16.02% net margin.
• Corporate actions and sentiment are positive: the board authorized a $100 million buyback and raised the quarterly dividend to $0.11, while analysts have recently upgraded the stock to an average "Buy" rating (average price target $43.25; Morgan Stanley raised its target to $51).

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $48.90 and last traded at $49.02, with a volume of 27854 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $47.11.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MBIN shares. Zacks Research upgraded Merchants Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Merchants Bancorp from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Merchants Bancorp from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $43.25.

Merchants Bancorp Stock Up 3.8%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.43. The firm has a market cap of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of 12.94 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $185.29 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $170.80 million. Merchants Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.17% and a net margin of 16.02%. Sell-side analysts predict that Merchants Bancorp will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merchants Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Merchants Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Merchants Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.64%.

Merchants Bancorp declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merchants Bancorp

In other news, insider Martin A. Schroeter sold 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.06, for a total value of $253,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 10,881 shares in the company, valued at $501,178.86. The trade was a 33.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 34.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,656,898 shares of the company's stock worth $56,433,000 after purchasing an additional 54,970 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,414,584 shares of the company's stock worth $48,181,000 after acquiring an additional 36,184 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 10.2% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 862,119 shares of the company's stock worth $27,415,000 after acquiring an additional 79,707 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 715,394 shares of the company's stock worth $24,371,000 after acquiring an additional 18,925 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 10.9% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 630,077 shares of the company's stock worth $20,036,000 after acquiring an additional 62,097 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.57% of the company's stock.

About Merchants Bancorp

Merchants Bancorp NASDAQ: MBIN is the bank holding company for Merchants Bank, a regional financial institution headquartered in Buffalo, New York. Through its network of branches and digital platforms, the company offers a range of banking services across western and central New York. Merchants Bancorp operates as a full‐service commercial bank, serving small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, families and individuals in its core markets.

The company's primary activities include deposit taking, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination, and treasury management services.

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