Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) shares hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $31.86 and last traded at $31.8040, with a volume of 110817 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $31.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALRS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Alerus Financial in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alerus Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Alerus Financial from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. DA Davidson raised their target price on Alerus Financial from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Alerus Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Alerus Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $30.50.

Alerus Financial Trading Up 2.0%

The company has a market capitalization of $800.77 million, a P/E ratio of 30.92 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $29.24 and a 200 day moving average of $26.08.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Alerus Financial will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alerus Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 26th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 26th. This is a positive change from Alerus Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Alerus Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.44%.

Institutional Trading of Alerus Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Phocas Financial Corp. boosted its stake in Alerus Financial by 102.2% in the 4th quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. now owns 334,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,530,000 after purchasing an additional 168,987 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Alerus Financial by 83.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 73,019 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after buying an additional 33,205 shares during the last quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alerus Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,512,000. Johnson Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alerus Financial in the fourth quarter worth $635,000. Finally, Gator Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC now owns 65,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,473,000 after buying an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. 51.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Alerus Financial

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.