Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS) Short Interest Down 9.2% in January

Alerus Financial Co. (NASDAQ:ALRS) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 200,200 shares, a decrease of 9.2% from the January 15th total of 220,500 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 84,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Alerus Financial Price Performance

Alerus Financial stock opened at $21.42 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $542.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.00 and a beta of 0.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $20.35 and its 200 day moving average is $21.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Alerus Financial has a 52-week low of $17.99 and a 52-week high of $24.41.

Alerus Financial (NASDAQ:ALRS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.16. Alerus Financial had a net margin of 6.26% and a return on equity of 7.66%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Alerus Financial will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alerus Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Alerus Financial’s payout ratio is presently 78.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Alerus Financial from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Alerus Financial from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price (up previously from $22.00) on shares of Alerus Financial in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Alerus Financial in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alerus Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.40.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 457.6% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,277 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Alerus Financial by 31.9% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new position in Alerus Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Alerus Financial by 41.7% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 6,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares in the last quarter. 51.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alerus Financial Company Profile

Alerus Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Alerus Financial, National Association that engages in the provision of various financial services to businesses and consumers. The company operates in four segments: Banking, Mortgage, Retirement and Benefit Services, and Wealth Management.