Short Interest in Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC) Decreases By 20.8%

Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 466,490 shares, a drop of 20.8% from the December 15th total of 589,082 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 202,552 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 202,552 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Enterprise Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EFSC traded down $0.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $55.48. The company had a trading volume of 141,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 149,123. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79 and a beta of 0.84. Enterprise Financial Services has a twelve month low of $45.22 and a twelve month high of $62.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The bank reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $177.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $176.52 million. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 19.98% and a return on equity of 10.82%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Enterprise Financial Services will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Enterprise Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Enterprise Financial Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 8.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,622,760 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $152,068,000 after purchasing an additional 207,256 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Enterprise Financial Services by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,422,965 shares of the bank’s stock worth $78,405,000 after purchasing an additional 20,794 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Enterprise Financial Services by 146.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 969,533 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,213,000 after buying an additional 576,655 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 934,727 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $51,510,000 after buying an additional 7,726 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 919,831 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $53,332,000 after buying an additional 10,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on EFSC. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $68.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of Enterprise Financial Services in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Enterprise Financial Services from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.67.

Enterprise Financial Services Company Profile

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.