Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM) Short Interest Down 53.5% in November

Mercantile Bank Co. (NASDAQ:MBWM) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 57,100 shares, a decrease of 53.5% from the November 15th total of 122,900 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 60,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.9 days.

Mercantile Bank Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ MBWM traded down $0.45 during trading on Friday, reaching $49.15. The company had a trading volume of 60,943 shares, compared to its average volume of 68,005. The business’s 50-day moving average is $47.11 and its 200 day moving average is $43.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $793.38 million, a PE ratio of 9.87 and a beta of 0.99. Mercantile Bank has a 12-month low of $33.46 and a 12-month high of $52.98.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $93.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.83 million. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 22.77% and a return on equity of 14.59%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Mercantile Bank will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mercantile Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Mercantile Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Mercantile Bank from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert B. Kaminski sold 5,800 shares of Mercantile Bank stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.75, for a total transaction of $300,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,025,167.50. This trade represents a 22.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 10,550 shares of company stock valued at $531,660 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.08% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mercantile Bank

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Mercantile Bank by 1.5% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 530,913 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,539,000 after purchasing an additional 8,100 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 376,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,484,000 after acquiring an additional 14,202 shares during the last quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Mercantile Bank by 0.7% during the second quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 363,806 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,532 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Mercantile Bank by 18.2% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 308,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,530,000 after purchasing an additional 47,528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its position in Mercantile Bank by 15.4% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 260,129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,553,000 after purchasing an additional 34,725 shares during the period. 58.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mercantile Bank Company Profile

Mercantile Bank Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Mercantile Bank of Michigan that provides commercial and retail banking services to small- to medium-sized businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, including checking, savings, and term certificate accounts; time deposits; and certificates of deposit.