Morgan Stanley Cuts Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) Price Target to $45.00

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) had its target price dropped by Morgan Stanley from $47.00 to $45.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 24.00% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on MBIN. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $53.00 price target (up previously from $50.00) on shares of Merchants Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Merchants Bancorp from $52.50 to $56.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th.

Merchants Bancorp Price Performance

Merchants Bancorp stock traded down $0.31 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $36.29. 17,689 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 175,912. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.94. The firm has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.16. Merchants Bancorp has a 1-year low of $34.16 and a 1-year high of $53.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40.

Merchants Bancorp (NASDAQ:MBIN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.58. Merchants Bancorp had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 22.08%. As a group, analysts forecast that Merchants Bancorp will post 5.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Scott A. Evans sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.10, for a total transaction of $1,077,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 27,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,189,818.60. The trade was a 47.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 39.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Merchants Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merchants Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Merchants Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $79,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Merchants Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Matrix Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Merchants Bancorp by 730.8% during the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 2,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Merchants Bancorp by 118.9% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,000 after acquiring an additional 1,933 shares during the period. 24.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merchants Bancorp Company Profile

Merchants Bancorp operates as the diversified bank holding company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Multi-family Mortgage Banking, Mortgage Warehousing, and Banking. The Multi-family Mortgage Banking segment engages in the mortgage banking, which originates and services government sponsored mortgages, including bridge financing products to refinance, acquire, or reposition multi-family housing projects, and construction lending for multi-family and healthcare facilities.