Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Equity Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:EQBK) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.20.

EQBK has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Equity Bancshares in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Equity Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Equity Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Brett A. Reber sold 1,686 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.85, for a total value of $80,675.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 34,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,650,585.75. The trade was a 4.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Donald Scott Rogerson acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $45.93 per share, with a total value of $91,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $229,650. This represents a 66.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 14.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Equity Bancshares by 282.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 680 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Equity Bancshares by 132.0% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 972 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Equity Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $59,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Equity Bancshares by 233.0% in 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 during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Equity Bancshares by 33.3% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the period. 71.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equity Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of EQBK opened at $48.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 38.71 and a beta of 0.77. Equity Bancshares has a 52-week low of $36.04 and a 52-week high of $51.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.00.

Equity Bancshares (NYSE:EQBK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $81.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $85.10 million. Equity Bancshares had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 12.85%. Sell-side analysts predict that Equity Bancshares will post 5.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equity Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Equity Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.14%.

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.