Tributary Capital Management LLC Purchases 239,193 Shares of Mercantile Bank Corporation $MBWM

Tributary Capital Management LLC increased its position in Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ:MBWM) by 92.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 497,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 239,193 shares during the period. Tributary Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mercantile Bank were worth $22,383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MBWM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Mercantile Bank by 73.1% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 155,904 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,236,000 after acquiring an additional 65,823 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mercantile Bank by 6.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 452,827 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,016,000 after purchasing an additional 26,202 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Mercantile Bank by 37.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 79,031 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,668,000 after purchasing an additional 21,428 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Mercantile Bank by 4.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 405,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,839,000 after purchasing an additional 17,580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Mercantile Bank by 19.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 109,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,083,000 after purchasing an additional 17,473 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.63% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mercantile Bank news, Director Nelson F. Sanchez acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $43.50 per share, with a total value of $43,500.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $152,337. The trade was a 39.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Mercantile Bank Stock Performance

Shares of Mercantile Bank stock opened at $48.75 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Mercantile Bank Corporation has a 52 week low of $37.76 and a 52 week high of $51.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $792.19 million, a P/E ratio of 9.23 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $46.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.87.

Mercantile Bank (NASDAQ:MBWM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $62.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.33 million. Mercantile Bank had a net margin of 23.05% and a return on equity of 13.78%. Sell-side analysts expect that Mercantile Bank Corporation will post 4.83 EPS for the current year.

Mercantile Bank Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. Mercantile Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 28.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MBWM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Mercantile Bank from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on Mercantile Bank from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Mercantile Bank in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price target on Mercantile Bank from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.50.

About Mercantile Bank

Mercantile Bank Corporation (NASDAQ: MBWM) is the bank holding company for Mercantile Bank of Michigan, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Through its state-chartered subsidiary, the company provides a broad range of financial products and services to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and consumers across West and Central Michigan.

The bank’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside commercial and consumer loan portfolios.