SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) Stock Rating Upgraded by Benchmark

SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Benchmark to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on SMBK. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of SmartFinancial in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on SmartFinancial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Zacks Research cut SmartFinancial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.50.

SmartFinancial Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:SMBK opened at $46.77 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $42.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.52. The stock has a market cap of $799.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.85 and a beta of 0.72. SmartFinancial has a 52-week low of $32.51 and a 52-week high of $47.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Victor Lynn Barrett acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $43.78 per share, with a total value of $131,340.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 151,724 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,642,476.72. This represents a 2.02% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Cathy G. Ackermann bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $42.12 per share, with a total value of $126,360.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 19,831 shares in the company, valued at $835,281.72. This represents a 17.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 6,290 shares of company stock worth $269,677. 6.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMBK. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 846,978 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,263,000 after purchasing an additional 26,373 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in SmartFinancial by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 838,797 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,027,000 after buying an additional 2,268 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 728,151 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,934,000 after acquiring an additional 80,639 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 178,374 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,598,000 after acquiring an additional 5,500 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SmartFinancial by 55.9% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 163,240 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,038,000 after acquiring an additional 58,560 shares during the last quarter. 58.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.