Russell Investments Group Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. $SYBT

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. has decreased its stake in Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. by 16.6%, now owning 74,744 shares valued at approximately $5.16 million.
• The company's quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, with reported earnings of $1.15 per share against an estimate of $1.05, alongside a revenue of $97.91 million compared to the expected $95.32 million.
• Stock Yards Bancorp announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.32, marking a rise from the previous amount, with stockholders of record set to receive it on October 1st.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its stake in Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SYBT - Free Report) by 16.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,744 shares of the bank's stock after selling 14,841 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.25% of Stock Yards Bancorp worth $5,162,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in Stock Yards Bancorp by 806.7% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 807 shares of the bank's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Stock Yards Bancorp by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,537 shares of the bank's stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV bought a new position in Stock Yards Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $114,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC raised its position in Stock Yards Bancorp by 53.4% during the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 2,762 shares of the bank's stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 962 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Stock Yards Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Institutional investors own 56.46% of the company's stock.

Stock Yards Bancorp Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:SYBT traded down $0.78 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $82.12. The stock had a trading volume of 150,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 97,354. Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. has a 12 month low of $56.35 and a 12 month high of $83.83. The company has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a PE ratio of 18.88 and a beta of 0.74. The firm's fifty day moving average is $77.85 and its 200 day moving average is $73.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Stock Yards Bancorp (NASDAQ:SYBT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.10. Stock Yards Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.31% and a net margin of 23.86%.The firm had revenue of $97.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $95.32 million. Analysts anticipate that Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc. will post 4.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stock Yards Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is an increase from Stock Yards Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Stock Yards Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on SYBT. Wall Street Zen lowered Stock Yards Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Stock Yards Bancorp from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Stock Yards Bancorp from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $79.75.

Insider Transactions at Stock Yards Bancorp

In other news, CEO James A. Hillebrand sold 2,162 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.32, for a total value of $180,137.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 107,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,939,569.44. This represents a 1.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael Croce sold 4,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.06, for a total value of $315,946.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,895,676. This represents a 14.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,064 shares of company stock worth $1,026,920 over the last 90 days. 3.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Stock Yards Bancorp Company Profile

Stock Yards Bancorp, Inc operates as a holding company for Stock Yards Bank & Trust Company that provides various financial services for individuals, corporations, and others in the United States. It operates in two segments, Commercial Banking, and WM&T. The Commercial Banking segment offers a range of loan and deposit products to individual consumers and businesses in all its markets through retail lending, mortgage banking, deposit services, online banking, mobile banking, private banking, commercial lending, commercial real estate lending, leasing, treasury management services, merchant services, international banking, correspondent banking, and other banking services.