Zacks Research Upgrades Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) to "Strong-Buy"

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on ALRS. Hovde Group downgraded Alerus Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alerus Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Alerus Financial from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial set a $29.00 price target on Alerus Financial and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Alerus Financial from $28.00 to $28.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.38.

Alerus Financial Stock Performance

ALRS opened at $27.10 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $692.68 million, a P/E ratio of 26.31 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.47. Alerus Financial has a 1-year low of $20.26 and a 1-year high of $27.60.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $75.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $73.78 million. Alerus Financial had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 6.74%. Equities analysts forecast that Alerus Financial will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alerus Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALRS. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Alerus Financial by 90.1% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 732 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,500 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in Alerus Financial by 25.7% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 2,222 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alerus Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial during the third quarter worth $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.25% of the company's stock.

About Alerus Financial

Alerus Financial Corporation NASDAQ: ALRS is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The firm provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking products, including deposit accounts, lending solutions and treasury management services for individuals, small businesses and larger corporate clients. Through its community banking network, Alerus emphasizes local decision-making and personalized service to meet the needs of its varied client base.

In addition to traditional banking offerings, Alerus operates a national mortgage origination and servicing platform that delivers home purchase and refinance loans.

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