Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $46.51, but opened at $44.50. Equity Bancshares shares last traded at $45.0480, with a volume of 9,822 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on EQBK. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Equity Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a report on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Equity Bancshares from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Equity Bancshares from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Equity Bancshares from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.67.

Equity Bancshares Trading Down 1.2%

The stock has a market capitalization of $964.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.03 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.22.

Equity Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Equity Bancshares’s payout ratio is 54.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Equity Bancshares by 282.0% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new position in Equity Bancshares during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Equity Bancshares by 132.0% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Equity Bancshares during the second quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Equity Bancshares by 233.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 1,347 shares in the last quarter. 71.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.