Equity Bancshares Inc (EQBK)
NYSE:EQBK
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Equity Bancshares
(NYSE:EQBK)
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Rating:60Neutral
Price Target:
$47.00
▲(2.20% Upside)
Action:ReiteratedDate:04/23/26
EQBK scores as a moderate-risk opportunity: the biggest drag is the deterioration in TTM profitability and especially cash flow (primary financial-quality concern). Offsetting that, the latest earnings call was broadly positive with clear NIM guidance, strong adjusted return metrics, and solid capital, while valuation is reasonable and technical signals are largely neutral.
Positive Factors
Scale from acquisitions and deposit growth
The Frontier deal and additional transactions meaningfully enlarged the franchise, producing sizable asset and deposit inflows that raise revenue capacity and diversify the loan mix. Larger scale strengthens core funding, expands markets served and supports higher recurring net interest income and fee opportunities over the medium term.
Negative Factors
Weak cash generation
A sudden deterioration to zero operating cash flow and negative free cash flow undermines earnings quality and internal funding capacity. Persistent weak cash conversion would constrain capital deployment, limit dividend/buyback sustainability and increase reliance on external funding over the coming quarters.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Scale from acquisitions and deposit growth
The Frontier deal and additional transactions meaningfully enlarged the franchise, producing sizable asset and deposit inflows that raise revenue capacity and diversify the loan mix. Larger scale strengthens core funding, expands markets served and supports higher recurring net interest income and fee opportunities over the medium term.
Read all positive factors
Equity Bancshares (EQBK) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$964.38M
Dividend Yield1.34%
Average Volume (3M)74.86K
Price to Earnings (P/E)12.5
Beta (1Y)0.86
Revenue Growth0.80%
EPS Growth-67.72%
CountryUS
Employees810
SectorFinancial
Sector Strength70
IndustryBanks - Regional
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)1.34
Shares Outstanding20,992,140
10 Day Avg. Volume93,324
30 Day Avg. Volume74,857
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio-0.54
Price to Book (P/B)1.16
Price to Sales (P/S)2.70
P/FCF Ratio22.30
Enterprise Value/Market Cap0.92
Enterprise Value/Revenue2.82
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit5.59
Enterprise Value/Ebitda10.43
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$51.50Price Target Upside11.98% Upside
Rating ConsensusHold
Number of Analyst Covering4
EPS Forecast (FY)4.74
Revenue Forecast (FY)$339.97M
Equity Bancshares Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Equity Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Equity Bank that provides a range of banking, mortgage banking, and financial services to individual and corporate customers. The company accepts various demand, savings, money marke...
How the Company Makes Money
Equity Bancshares primarily makes money through traditional banking activities conducted by its subsidiary bank. The largest revenue driver is typically net interest income: the bank earns interest and fees on loans (e.g., commercial, real estate,...
Equity Bancshares Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Apr 14, 2026
(Q1-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Jul 21, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call conveyed strong positive momentum driven by acquisitions, sizable asset and deposit growth, robust loan production, solid adjusted earnings and return metrics, and successful integration milestones (on-time core conversion and cost-savings beginning to realize). Key near-term challenges center on integration-related expense increases, acquisition-driven margin pressure and higher-cost funding, and a rise in nonperforming/nonaccrual balances largely attributable to acquired portfolios and short-term conversion/renewal issues that management expects to resolve. On balance, the positives (scale, revenue, adjusted profitability, capital strength and a clear plan to reprice funding and extract cost savings) outweigh the manageable near-term headwinds.Positive Updates
Acquisitions and Asset Growth
Frontier acquisition drove a ~20% increase in assets and contributed to record quarterly revenue; combined with another transaction, the asset base is >40% larger year-over-year (vs March 2025).
Negative Updates
Margin Compression from Acquisition Funding Mix
Reported NIM declined to 4.33% from 4.47% prior quarter (normalized 4.29%) as Frontier brought a higher cost funding profile; purchase accounting accretion added ~19 bps (about $3.3M) and is expected to normalize to ~$2.5M in future quarters, creating periodic variability.
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Acquisitions and Asset Growth
Frontier acquisition drove a ~20% increase in assets and contributed to record quarterly revenue; combined with another transaction, the asset base is >40% larger year-over-year (vs March 2025).
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Management's guidance emphasized a full-year NIM range of 4.20%–4.35% (quarter NIM 4.33%, normalized quarter NIM ~4.29% after $3.3M loan accretion), confidence in a $5.00 per-share 2026 target, an effective tax rate of 22%–23%, and expectation of mid-single-digit organic loan growth; purchase accounting accretion ran $3.3M this quarter (≈19 bps) and is expected to normalize to about $2.5M; provision commentary moved to roughly a $1.5M–$2.0M quarterly run rate (management noted this may be modestly below prior $6M–$8M annual framing absent specific credit deterioration); capital and liquidity remain strong with ~>$25M quarterly capital generation, TCE 9.0% (bank TCE 9.8%), CET1 11.5%, total capital 14.4%, average interest‑earning assets +22.2% and interest‑bearing liabilities +25.6% (ending IBL/IEA 76.4%), loan-to-deposit 86%, a $517M 75% pipeline, active buybacks (500k shares repurchased at $44.74; ~327.7k shares remain authorized), and operating metrics including NII $73.7M, adjusted noninterest expense 2.57% of average assets (improved 25 bps), pretax pre‑provision net revenue $34.7M ($1.63/sh), and adjusted return on average tangible common equity of 16.1%.Equity Bancshares Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
62
Positive
Balance Sheet
68
Positive
Cash Flow
34
Negative
| Breakdown | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | |||||
| Total Revenue | 314.26M | 326.51M | 224.68M | 220.28M | 186.81M |
| Gross Profit | 158.37M | 217.67M | 135.63M | 194.99M | 180.59M |
| EBITDA | 84.83M | 88.54M | 11.05M | 79.65M | 73.34M |
| Net Income | 22.73M | 62.62M | 7.82M | 57.69M | 52.48M |
Balance Sheet | |||||
| Total Assets | 6.37B | 5.33B | 5.03B | 4.98B | 5.14B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 1.64B | 1.19B | 1.28B | 1.29B | 1.59B |
| Total Debt | 448.22M | 312.80M | 380.50M | 281.73M | 151.89M |
| Total Liabilities | 5.64B | 4.74B | 4.58B | 4.57B | 4.64B |
| Stockholders Equity | 732.05M | 592.92M | 452.86M | 410.06M | 500.63M |
Cash Flow | |||||
| Free Cash Flow | 38.11M | 65.35M | 60.39M | 70.58M | 97.60M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 51.37M | 73.84M | 76.53M | 74.07M | 102.70M |
| Investing Cash Flow | 136.92M | 123.73M | 232.17M | -214.18M | -315.34M |
| Financing Cash Flow | 35.79M | -192.93M | -34.03M | -15.41M | 191.90M |
Equity Bancshares Technical Analysis
Positive
45.99
Price Trends
45.05
Positive
45.24
Positive
42.73
Positive
Market Momentum
0.38
Negative
57.55
Neutral
39.98
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For EQBK, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 45.99 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 44.84, above the 50-day MA of 45.05, and above the 200-day MA of 42.73, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 0.38 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 57.55 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 39.98 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for EQBK.
Equity Bancshares Risk Analysis
Equity Bancshares disclosed 97 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Equity Bancshares reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Equity Bancshares Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (68)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
75 Outperform | $879.61M | 10.13 | 13.73% | 3.39% | 5.37% | 40.00% | |
75 Outperform | $1.02B | 19.79 | 10.87% | 3.21% | 4.14% | -9.04% | |
74 Outperform | $1.12B | 7.07 | 10.95% | 0.38% | 9.48% | 37.91% | |
73 Outperform | $909.21M | 7.90 | 10.08% | 2.68% | 25.89% | ― | |
73 Outperform | $1.14B | 13.27 | 7.58% | 3.91% | 8.28% | 37.82% | |
68 Neutral | $18.00B | 11.42 | 9.92% | 3.81% | 9.73% | 1.22% | |
60 Neutral | $964.38M | 12.46 | 3.40% | 1.34% | 0.80% | -67.72% |
* Financial Sector Average
EQBK
Equity Bancshares
45.94
7.19
18.56%
CCNE
Cnb Financial
30.68
8.74
39.84%
CPF
Central Pacific Financial
33.70
7.85
30.34%
HFWA
Heritage Financial
27.61
5.04
22.35%
MCB
Metropolitan Bank Holding
89.56
25.97
40.84%
HBT
HBT Financial
28.05
5.27
23.12%
Equity Bancshares Corporate Events
Executive/Board ChangesShareholder Meetings
Equity Bancshares Shareholders Expand Equity Plan, Affirm Governance
Positive
Apr 22, 2026
At its April 21, 2026 annual meeting, Equity Bancshares’ stockholders approved a second amendment to the company’s 2022 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan, adding 1,000,000 authorized shares of Class A common stock for future equity awards,...
Business Operations and StrategyStock BuybackDividendsFinancial DisclosuresM&A Transactions
Equity Bancshares Reports Strong First-Quarter 2026 Earnings Growth
Positive
Apr 14, 2026
Equity Bancshares reported first‑quarter 2026 net income of $17.0 million, or $0.80 per diluted share, with adjusted net income of $26.3 million, or $1.23 per share, reflecting record revenue driven by strong net interest income and franchis...
Dividends
Equity Bancshares Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend for Shareholders
Positive
Feb 23, 2026
On February 18, 2026, Equity Bancshares, Inc. announced that its board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.18 per share on its common stock. The dividend is scheduled to be paid on April 15, 2026, to shareholders of record as of ...
Business Operations and StrategyPrivate Placements and Financing
Equity Bancshares Extends Key Credit Facility with ServisFirst
Positive
Feb 17, 2026
On February 13, 2026, Equity Bancshares, Inc. entered into a ninth amendment to its Loan and Security Agreement with ServisFirst Bank, under which the company is the borrower. The amendment extends the maturity date of the credit commitment under ...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.