MSH Capital Advisors LLC Purchases New Shares in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. $CBSH

MSH Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 16,972 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $980,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 85.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 865,052 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,780,000 after purchasing an additional 16,610 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 10,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $631,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Commerce Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $376,000. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 208,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,941,000 after buying an additional 9,483 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Commerce Bancshares

In related news, EVP Robert S. Holmes sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.20, for a total transaction of $301,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 55,962 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,368,912.40. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John W. Kemper sold 5,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.58, for a total transaction of $353,181.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 206,528 shares in the company, valued at $12,511,466.24. The trade was a 2.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 32,484 shares of company stock valued at $1,936,055 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Commerce Bancshares Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of CBSH opened at $58.87 on Thursday. Commerce Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.99 and a 12-month high of $60.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $58.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.06. Commerce Bancshares had a net margin of 26.07% and a return on equity of 14.31%. The company had revenue of $498.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $492.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.25 EPS for the current year.

Commerce Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Commerce Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Commerce Bancshares from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective (up from $62.00) on shares of Commerce Bancshares in a report on Friday, July 17th. Stephens set a $64.00 target price on shares of Commerce Bancshares and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $65.00 target price (up from $61.00) on shares of Commerce Bancshares in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $63.00 price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Commerce Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.29.

About Commerce Bancshares

Commerce Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company primarily engaged in providing a broad range of banking and financial services across the Midwest. Through its principal subsidiary, Commerce Bank, the company offers commercial and consumer banking, treasury management, trust and wealth advisory, and mortgage lending. Its diversified product suite includes deposit and loan products, cash management solutions, capital markets services, and private banking designed to meet the needs of individuals, small businesses, and large corporations.

The company’s commercial banking group delivers tailored credit facilities, equipment and inventory financing, asset-based lending, and merchant services.