Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:MBWM) Announces Dividend Increase – $0.40 Per Share

Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:MBWM) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, July 16th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of 0.40 per share by the financial services provider on Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This is a 2.6% increase from Mercantile Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39.

Mercantile Bank has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. Mercantile Bank has a dividend payout ratio of 31.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Mercantile Bank to earn $5.80 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 27.6%.

Mercantile Bank Price Performance

MBWM stock opened at $59.14 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Mercantile Bank has a 52-week low of $42.75 and a 52-week high of $62.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $59.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.53. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a PE ratio of 10.41 and a beta of 0.79.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.21. Mercantile Bank had a return on equity of 13.66% and a net margin of 24.75%.The company had revenue of $68.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $68.81 million. Analysts predict that Mercantile Bank will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MBWM. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 68,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,989,000 after buying an additional 3,621 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Mercantile Bank by 21.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 92,045 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,998,000 after acquiring an additional 16,092 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 4.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 4.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 57,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,508,000 after acquiring an additional 2,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Mercantile Bank by 21.0% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 15,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $693,000 after acquiring an additional 2,772 shares during the period. 58.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Mercantile Bank

Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ: MBWM) is the bank holding company for Mercantile Bank of Michigan, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Through its state-chartered subsidiary, the company provides a broad range of financial products and services to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and consumers across West and Central Michigan.

The bank’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside commercial and consumer loan portfolios.