Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $29.30 and last traded at $29.2350, with a volume of 71740 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.71.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on ALRS. Zacks Research raised Alerus Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Alerus Financial from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Alerus Financial from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Alerus Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Alerus Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alerus Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $28.38.

Alerus Financial Trading Up 0.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The business has a 50 day moving average of $26.22 and a 200 day moving average of $24.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $727.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.08 and a beta of 0.69.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.31. Alerus Financial had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 6.74%.The business had revenue of $75.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $73.78 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Alerus Financial will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alerus Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. This is a positive change from Alerus Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Alerus Financial’s payout ratio is presently 85.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Alerus Financial by 90.1% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 2,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial in the third quarter valued at about $59,000. 51.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alerus Financial Company Profile

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.