SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $46.50 and last traded at $46.4580, with a volume of 6360 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $44.84.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SMBK. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of SmartFinancial in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of SmartFinancial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of SmartFinancial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.88.

SmartFinancial Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market cap of $794.03 million, a P/E ratio of 21.73 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $42.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.39.

SmartFinancial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. This is an increase from SmartFinancial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. SmartFinancial’s dividend payout ratio is 11.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cathy G. Ackermann purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $42.12 per share, with a total value of $126,360.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 19,831 shares in the company, valued at $835,281.72. This represents a 17.82% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Victor Lynn Barrett purchased 3,000 shares of SmartFinancial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $43.78 per share, with a total value of $131,340.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 151,724 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,642,476.72. This trade represents a 2.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders acquired 6,290 shares of company stock worth $269,677. Insiders own 6.93% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SmartFinancial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of SmartFinancial in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in SmartFinancial by 46.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,499 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in SmartFinancial by 173.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,895 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in SmartFinancial by 209.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,105 shares of the bank’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 13.2% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,708 shares of the bank’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. 58.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About SmartFinancial

SmartFinancial, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, operating through its primary subsidiary, SmartBank. Incorporated in 2006, the company provides a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses and public entities across its regional footprint. SmartFinancial’s network of branch offices and digital platforms combines community-banking relationships with modern technology to serve its customers’ evolving needs.

Through SmartBank, the company offers a broad range of deposit products, including checking, savings and certificate of deposit accounts, alongside consumer and commercial lending solutions.