Commerce Bancshares, Inc. $CBSH Shares Acquired by Cooke & Bieler LP

Key Points

• Cooke & Bieler LP increased its stake in Commerce Bancshares by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, buying 58,530 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 995,394 shares worth about $52.1 million.
• Commerce Bancshares reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.96 per share, though revenue of $475.7 million came in slightly below estimates. Revenue still rose 11.1% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.275 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 2.1%, while analysts currently rate the stock as a consensus Hold with an average price target of $59.30.

Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its stake in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH - Free Report) by 6.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 995,394 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 58,530 shares during the quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP owned about 0.75% of Commerce Bancshares worth $52,099,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new position in Commerce Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 85.4% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 469 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 3,820.0% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 588 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 573 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Commerce Bancshares

In other news, SVP Kim L. Jakovich sold 949 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.45, for a total transaction of $48,826.05. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 12,741 shares in the company, valued at approximately $655,524.45. This represents a 6.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Timothy S. Dunn purchased 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $47.71 per share, for a total transaction of $119,275.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,403 shares in the company, valued at $257,777.13. This trade represents a 86.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Commerce Bancshares Price Performance

CBSH opened at $52.37 on Tuesday. Commerce Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.99 and a 52 week high of $63.19. The business's 50 day moving average is $50.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.76. The firm has a market cap of $7.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.61.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $475.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $481.94 million. Commerce Bancshares had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 26.37%.The company's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commerce Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Commerce Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Commerce Bancshares from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Commerce Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Commerce Bancshares from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $54.00 target price (up from $53.00) on shares of Commerce Bancshares in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Commerce Bancshares presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $59.30.

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.

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