First Trust Advisors LP Decreases Stake in Enterprise Financial Services Corporation $EFSC

First Trust Advisors LP cut its stake in Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC) by 2.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,387,618 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 35,347 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Enterprise Financial Services were worth $80,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of EFSC. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 146.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 969,533 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,213,000 after buying an additional 576,655 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services during the second quarter valued at $4,959,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 33.3% during the second quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 311,614 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,170,000 after buying an additional 77,890 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 141.7% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 107,910 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,946,000 after acquiring an additional 63,261 shares during the period. Finally, Visionary Wealth Advisors increased its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 1,009.4% in the 2nd quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 57,989 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,195,000 after acquiring an additional 52,762 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.21% of the company’s stock.

Enterprise Financial Services Stock Down 1.0%

EFSC stock opened at $54.03 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.18 and a beta of 0.82. Enterprise Financial Services Corporation has a 12 month low of $45.22 and a 12 month high of $62.30. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The bank reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $190.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.54 million. Enterprise Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.57% and a net margin of 20.15%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Enterprise Financial Services Corporation will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Enterprise Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on EFSC shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Enterprise Financial Services from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Enterprise Financial Services from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Enterprise Financial Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.00.

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.