Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $38.00 target price (down from $40.00) on shares of Merchants Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $42.00 price target (up from $41.00) on shares of Merchants Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Merchants Bancorp from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merchants Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Merchants Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

Merchants Bancorp Price Performance

MBIN opened at $42.76 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 11.31 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $35.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.26. Merchants Bancorp has a 52-week low of $27.25 and a 52-week high of $43.77.

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $193.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.80 million. Merchants Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.35% and a net margin of 16.02%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merchants Bancorp will post 5.54 EPS for the current year.

Merchants Bancorp declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 135.6% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 365,075 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,609,000 after acquiring an additional 210,151 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its stake in Merchants Bancorp by 1,509.5% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 175,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,589,000 after purchasing an additional 164,834 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 17.4% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 681,486 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,539,000 after purchasing an additional 101,139 shares in the last quarter. Doma Perpetual Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merchants Bancorp during the third quarter valued at $2,984,000. Finally, Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 862,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,415,000 after acquiring an additional 79,707 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 24.57% of the company’s stock.

About Merchants Bancorp

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ: MBIN) is the bank holding company for Merchants Bank, a regional financial institution headquartered in Buffalo, New York. Through its network of branches and digital platforms, the company offers a range of banking services across western and central New York. Merchants Bancorp operates as a full‐service commercial bank, serving small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, families and individuals in its core markets.

The company’s primary activities include deposit taking, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage origination, and treasury management services.