Shares of Mercantile Bank (MBWM) surged 5% in intraday trading on Wednesday, outperforming the broader market. The rally was driven by multiple analyst upgrades and price target increases following the bank's robust Q4 and full year 2024 results.
Hovde Group upgraded Mercantile Bank to Outperform from Market Perform with a $54 price target, citing the bank's strong commercial loan growth and deposit gains. Keefe Bruyette also raised its price target on the stock to $57 from $56, maintaining an Outperform rating.
Mercantile Bank reported solid financial performance for 2024, highlighted by an 8.5% increase in commercial loans and a 20% growth in local deposits. This allowed the bank to reduce its loan-to-deposit ratio to a more favorable 98% from 110% at the end of 2023. Furthermore, asset quality remained robust, with nonperforming assets at just 0.09% of total assets.
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