Vest Financial LLC Takes $3.42 Million Position in Enterprise Financial Services Corp (NASDAQ:EFSC)

Vest Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Enterprise Financial Services Corp (NASDAQ:EFSC) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 63,702 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $3,423,000. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.17% of Enterprise Financial Services at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 5.0% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 61,908 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,327,000 after buying an additional 2,924 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 38,627.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 24,398 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,311,000 after acquiring an additional 24,335 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 51.7% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 775 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,338 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $414,000 after purchasing an additional 699 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Phocas Financial Corp. raised its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. now owns 138,498 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,811,000 after purchasing an additional 24,785 shares during the period. 72.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James Brian Lally sold 4,689 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.18, for a total transaction of $258,739.02. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,974 shares in the company, valued at $5,902,825.32. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on Enterprise Financial Services from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Enterprise Financial Services from $69.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday.

Enterprise Financial Services Trading Up 2.5%

EFSC stock opened at $52.88 on Friday. Enterprise Financial Services Corp has a 12-month low of $37.31 and a 12-month high of $63.13. The business’s 50-day moving average is $51.46 and its 200 day moving average is $55.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 0.86.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The bank reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.14. Enterprise Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 20.12%. The firm had revenue of $18.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $162.83 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Enterprise Financial Services Corp will post 4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This is a positive change from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Enterprise Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.53%.

About Enterprise Financial Services

Enterprise Financial Services Corp operates as the holding company for Enterprise Bank & Trust that offers banking and wealth management services to individuals and corporate customers primarily in Arizona, California, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, and New Mexico. It provides checking, savings, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit.