Brokerages Set Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) PT at $54.17

Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $55.3333.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on EQBK shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Equity Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. Benchmark started coverage on Equity Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Equity Bancshares from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Equity Bancshares from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 4th.

Insider Activity at Equity Bancshares

In other news, COO Julie Huber sold 2,197 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.12, for a total value of $112,310.64. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 62,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,169,900.08. This represents a 3.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lisa Ann Schlehuber purchased 989 shares of Equity Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $50.98 per share, for a total transaction of $50,419.22. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $106,650.16. The trade was a 89.66% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders purchased 4,989 shares of company stock worth $250,919 and sold 24,500 shares worth $1,250,951. Insiders own 14.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EQBK. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Equity Bancshares during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $408,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new position in Equity Bancshares in the second quarter worth $293,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Equity Bancshares by 38,500.0% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 1,540 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new stake in Equity Bancshares during the second quarter valued at $227,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Equity Bancshares by 7,658.1% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 988,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,432,000 after purchasing an additional 975,875 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.80% of the company’s stock.

Equity Bancshares Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE EQBK opened at $49.54 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.67 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Equity Bancshares has a 52 week low of $38.60 and a 52 week high of $52.27.

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.17. Equity Bancshares had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The firm had revenue of $81.93 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $85.10 million. Equities research analysts predict that Equity Bancshares will post 5.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Equity Bancshares

Equity Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Equity Bank, a regional financial services provider headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. As a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker EQBK, Equity Bancshares operates a network of branches and lending offices across Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Illinois and Colorado. Its geographic footprint spans both urban and rural markets, reflecting a focus on supporting small businesses, agricultural enterprises and individual consumers throughout the Midwest.

The company’s core business activities encompass a full spectrum of commercial and consumer banking services.