Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $25.00.

Several research firms recently weighed in on ALRS. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Alerus Financial from $25.50 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Alerus Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $25.00 to $27.00 in a report on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Alerus Financial in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Alerus Financial from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Alerus Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st.

Alerus Financial Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ ALRS opened at $24.15 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $613.41 million, a P/E ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. Alerus Financial has a 1 year low of $15.78 and a 1 year high of $24.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $22.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.05.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.07. Alerus Financial had a return on equity of 11.63% and a net margin of 13.45%.The company had revenue of $72.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $71.41 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alerus Financial will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Alerus Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th were issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 26th. Alerus Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.38%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alerus Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALRS. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Alerus Financial by 110.9% during the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 97,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,115,000 after buying an additional 51,405 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alerus Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $201,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new position in shares of Alerus Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,341,000. CSM Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Alerus Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $4,123,000. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Alerus Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,982,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.25% of the company’s stock.

About Alerus Financial

Alerus Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ALRS) is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The firm provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking products, including deposit accounts, lending solutions and treasury management services for individuals, small businesses and larger corporate clients. Through its community banking network, Alerus emphasizes local decision-making and personalized service to meet the needs of its varied client base.

In addition to traditional banking offerings, Alerus operates a national mortgage origination and servicing platform that delivers home purchase and refinance loans.