Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC) Hits New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBC)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $78.73 and last traded at $78.4840, with a volume of 9046 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SMBC. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $76.00 price objective (up from $72.00) on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 target price (up from $71.00) on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.33.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $72.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $859.50 million, a PE ratio of 12.16 and a beta of 0.86.

Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The savings and loans company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.31. Southern Missouri Bancorp had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The firm had revenue of $51.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $51.14 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. will post 6.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Southern Missouri Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Southern Missouri Bancorp’s payout ratio is 16.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern Missouri Bancorp

In related news, EVP Richard Windes sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.70, for a total transaction of $139,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $374,637.50. The trade was a 27.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 15.81% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern Missouri Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp by 122.9% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 9,623 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 5,306 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 4.3% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,681 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 8.2% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 22,546 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 1,702 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Southern Missouri Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $740,000. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Southern Missouri Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $94,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.49% of the company’s stock.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Company Profile

Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc (NASDAQ: SMBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in West Plains, Missouri, serving as the parent of Southern Bank. The company focuses on delivering community banking services to individual and commercial customers across southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. It operates branch offices in local markets and provides a comprehensive suite of deposit and lending products tailored to both urban and rural communities.

Through its subsidiary, Southern Bank, the company offers deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside digital and mobile banking platforms.