Bridgeway Capital Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Enterprise Financial Services Corporation $EFSC

Bridgeway Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDAQ:EFSC) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 316,875 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 9,401 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Enterprise Financial Services were worth $17,111,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFSC. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,622,760 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $152,068,000 after acquiring an additional 207,256 shares in the last quarter. Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 109.8% during the 4th quarter. Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 185,240 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,003,000 after acquiring an additional 96,926 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,471,244 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $79,447,000 after acquiring an additional 83,626 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in Enterprise Financial Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,168,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Enterprise Financial Services by 18.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 363,587 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,081,000 after acquiring an additional 56,884 shares in the last quarter. 72.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Enterprise Financial Services Price Performance

EFSC opened at $61.97 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. Enterprise Financial Services Corporation has a 1 year low of $51.18 and a 1 year high of $64.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.69 and a beta of 0.80.

Enterprise Financial Services (NASDAQ:EFSC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.01. Enterprise Financial Services had a net margin of 19.81% and a return on equity of 10.35%. The business had revenue of $188.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.02 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Enterprise Financial Services Corporation will post 5.55 EPS for the current year.

Enterprise Financial Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.34 dividend. This is a boost from Enterprise Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Enterprise Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio is 25.66%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Mark G. Ponder sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.55, for a total value of $75,687.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,424,499.30. This trade represents a 5.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on EFSC. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of Enterprise Financial Services in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Enterprise Financial Services from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Enterprise Financial Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Enterprise Financial Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.00.

Enterprise Financial Services 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.