Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) Downgraded to “Sell” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on EFSC. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Enterprise Financial Services in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised Enterprise Financial Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Enterprise Financial Services from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.00.

Enterprise Financial Services Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:EFSC opened at $59.83 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.29 and a beta of 0.79. Enterprise Financial Services has a 1 year low of $50.88 and a 1 year high of $62.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $113.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $174.02 million. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 19.81% and a return on equity of 10.35%. Equities analysts forecast that Enterprise Financial Services will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Enterprise Financial Services’s payout ratio is 25.66%.

Insider Activity at Enterprise Financial Services

In related news, EVP Mark G. Ponder sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.55, for a total value of $75,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,424,499.30. This represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Enterprise Financial Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EFSC. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 3.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,188,766 shares of the bank’s stock worth $118,435,000 after buying an additional 65,912 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 7,128 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the last quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp boosted its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 332,562 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,995,000 after acquiring an additional 983 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp acquired a new position in Enterprise Financial Services during the 1st quarter worth $109,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 8,352 shares of the bank’s stock worth $452,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. 72.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Enterprise Financial Services

Enterprise Financial Services Corp. (NASDAQ: EFSC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Clayton, Missouri, operating through its primary subsidiary, Enterprise Bank & Trust. The company provides a comprehensive range of banking and financial services to individuals, small- and mid-sized businesses, and institutional clients. Its capabilities encompass deposit products, lending solutions, mortgage banking, and treasury management, supported by a full suite of digital banking tools and personalized client service.

In its commercial banking segment, Enterprise Bank & Trust offers lines of credit, equipment financing, commercial real estate loans, construction lending and agriculture lending.