HBT vs MBWM: Correlation
How closely do HBT Financial, Inc. (HBT) and Mercantile Bank Corporation (MBWM) trade together? Their weekly returns over three years give a correlation of 0.86, which is very strong.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are HBT and MBWM?
On 3 years of weekly data the HBT/MBWM correlation comes out at 0.86, very strong, meaning they move nearly in lockstep. Little has changed lately, as the 1-year reading of 0.82 lands near the 3-year figure. The 5-year figure is 0.77, and annualized covariance runs at 683.3 %².
In HBT's tracked universe of 17 assets, MBWM sits right near the top at #1. Over the last 12 months HBT came out ahead by 14.6 percentage points (+38.3% against +23.7%).
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
HBT vs MBWM: side by side
| HBT (HBT Financial, Inc.) | MBWM (Mercantile Bank Corporation) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +38.3% | +23.7% |
| 5-year return | +160.4% | +126.2% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 26.7% | 29.8% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 0.80 | 0.82 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -18.7% | -25.0% |
| Market cap | $1.3B | $1.0B |
| P/E (trailing) | 15.2 | 10.5 |
| Dividend yield | 2.47% | 2.57% |
| Sector / category | US Listed | US Listed |
Year-by-year returns
| Year | HBT | MBWM |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +8.1% | -0.8% |
| 2023 | +11.7% | +25.8% |
| 2024 | +7.7% | +14.0% |
| 2025 | +22.2% | +11.7% |
| 2026 | +41.4% | +26.1% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are HBT and MBWM good diversifiers for each other?
No: a correlation of 0.86 means HBT and MBWM tend to fall together, which is precisely when diversification is supposed to help.
FAQ
What is the correlation between HBT and MBWM?
Using weekly returns as of 2026-08-27: 0.86 over 3 years, with 0.82 over the last year and 0.77 over 5 years.
Is MBWM a good diversifier for HBT?
No: a correlation of 0.86 means HBT and MBWM tend to fall together, which is precisely when diversification is supposed to help.
What does a correlation of 0.86 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.86 describes how much the two returns move together: +1 is lockstep, 0 is independence, negative values mean opposite directions. It says nothing about which performed better.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/hbt-vs-mbwm.json
Embed this badge (it refreshes with the data), with attribution:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/hbt-vs-mbwm/)
The core API is free. Terms and every endpoint in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: HBT correlations · MBWM correlations
