Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. $SMBC Shares Acquired by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. has increased its holdings in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 10.5%, owning approximately 1.92% of the company, valued at $11.96 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Southern Missouri Bancorp reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates of $1.23, alongside revenue of $47.61 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.25 per share, representing a yield of 1.8%, effective for investors on record by August 15th.

American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBC - Free Report) by 10.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 229,885 shares of the savings and loans company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,788 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 1.92% of Southern Missouri Bancorp worth $11,959,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp by 147.5% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,542 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $202,000 after purchasing an additional 2,111 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD acquired a new stake in Southern Missouri Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $220,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 7,404.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,578 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $238,000 after acquiring an additional 4,517 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,447 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,577 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. 49.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a report on Thursday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $64.67.

Insider Activity at Southern Missouri Bancorp

In related news, Director William E. Young sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total value of $563,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 94,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,347,768.10. This represents a 9.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 16.60% of the company's stock.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Stock Performance

SMBC stock traded up $0.07 during trading on Thursday, hitting $57.85. 21,193 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 30,305. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $55.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $653.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.17 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $45.10 and a 52 week high of $68.69.

Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The savings and loans company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $47.61 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $46.60 million. Southern Missouri Bancorp had a net margin of 19.17% and a return on equity of 11.35%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. will post 5.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is an increase from Southern Missouri Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Southern Missouri Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 19.31%.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Profile

Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Southern Bank that provides banking and financial services to individuals and corporate customers in the United States. The company offers deposits products, including interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing transaction accounts, saving accounts, certificates of deposit, retirement savings plans, and money market deposit accounts.