Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 7,561 Shares of Enterprise Financial Services Corp (NASDAQ:EFSC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Enterprise Financial Services Corp (NASDAQ:EFSC) by 47.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,557 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 7,561 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.06% of Enterprise Financial Services worth $1,329,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in Enterprise Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Quarry LP grew its position in Enterprise Financial Services by 2,593.5% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 835 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 804 shares in the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Enterprise Financial Services during the third quarter worth about $102,000. FMR LLC grew its position in Enterprise Financial Services by 34.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the bank’s stock worth $131,000 after buying an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Enterprise Financial Services by 169.7% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,452 shares of the bank’s stock worth $177,000 after buying an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. 72.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on EFSC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Enterprise Financial Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Enterprise Financial Services from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Enterprise Financial Services Price Performance

EFSC opened at $56.45 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $58.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $56.07. Enterprise Financial Services Corp has a 12-month low of $37.28 and a 12-month high of $63.13. 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 capitalization of $2.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 0.97.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The bank reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.14. Enterprise Financial Services had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 20.12%. Equities analysts predict that Enterprise Financial Services Corp will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. Enterprise Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.97%.

Insider Activity at Enterprise Financial Services

In related news, Director James M. Havel sold 5,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.47, for a total transaction of $323,046.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 15,447 shares in the company, valued at $903,186.09. This represents a 26.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Enterprise Financial Services Profile

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.