The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Purchases New Stake in Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. $SMBC

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired 237,224 shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp, valued at approximately $18.1 million and representing about 2.15% of the company. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 49.49% of SMBC.
• Southern Missouri Bancorp reported quarterly EPS of $1.83, beating analyst expectations of $1.52, while revenue reached $51.77 million. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.25 to $0.27 per share, implying a 1.5% annualized yield.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $83.67, compared with the stock’s opening price of $73.98.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBC - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 237,224 shares of the savings and loans company's stock, valued at approximately $18,079,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 2.15% of Southern Missouri Bancorp at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMBC. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $85,270,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 440,839 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $28,187,000 after acquiring an additional 11,946 shares during the period. FJ Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 300,944 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $15,818,000 after acquiring an additional 18,002 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 275,909 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $16,312,000 after acquiring an additional 62,355 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp by 86.5% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 100,724 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $5,294,000 after purchasing an additional 46,730 shares during the period. 49.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Richard Windes sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.70, for a total value of $139,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,375 shares of the company's stock, valued at $374,637.50. The trade was a 27.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 15.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on SMBC shares. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $83.00 price objective (up from $79.00) on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a report on Monday, July 27th. Stephens cut Southern Missouri Bancorp from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a report on Thursday, June 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.67.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SMBC opened at $73.98 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $76.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.74. The firm has a market cap of $815.26 million, a PE ratio of 11.51 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.60 and a 1-year high of $79.86.

Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The savings and loans company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $51.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $51.14 million. Southern Missouri Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.72% and a net margin of 22.63%. Research analysts predict that Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. will post 6.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. This is an increase from Southern Missouri Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Southern Missouri Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.80%.

Southern Missouri Bancorp 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.

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