Enterprise Financial Services Corp (NASDAQ:EFSC) to Issue Dividend Increase – $0.25 Per Share

Enterprise Financial Services Corp (NASDAQ:EFSC – Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, January 23rd, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.25 per share by the bank on Friday, March 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 14th. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24.

Enterprise Financial Services has raised its dividend by an average of 13.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 5 years. Enterprise Financial Services has a dividend payout ratio of 16.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Enterprise Financial Services to earn $5.65 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.0%.

Enterprise Financial Services Stock Up 7.4 %

Enterprise Financial Services stock opened at $52.58 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 10.37 and a beta of 1.15. Enterprise Financial Services has a twelve month low of $39.63 and a twelve month high of $54.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a 50 day moving average of $49.83 and a 200-day moving average of $48.04.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 24th. The bank reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $173.61 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $142.42 million. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 35.36% and a return on equity of 14.65%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Enterprise Financial Services will post 5.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Enterprise Financial Services

In related news, Director Richard Sanborn sold 24,552 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total value of $1,279,159.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 80,552 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,196,759.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFSC. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 48.8% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 723 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 29.5% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 2,020 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC bought a new stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at $231,000. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,513 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,354 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.87% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on EFSC shares. DA Davidson raised shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $46.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 15th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.33.

About Enterprise Financial Services

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Enterprise Financial Services Corp operates as the financial holding company for Enterprise Bank & Trust that offers banking and wealth management services to individuals and corporate customers. The company offers checking, savings, and money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. It also provides commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, construction and land development, residential real estate, agricultural, and consumer loans.