NFJ Investment Group LLC Increases Stock Position in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH)

NFJ Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) by 17.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 707,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 106,316 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bancshares makes up about 1.2% of NFJ Investment Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. NFJ Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Commerce Bancshares were worth $42,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Commerce Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 51.1% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Commerce Bancshares in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in Commerce Bancshares in the 3rd quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Commerce Bancshares by 156.5% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Commerce Bancshares Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ CBSH traded up $0.10 on Tuesday, hitting $69.51. 53,549 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 556,245. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $64.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.97. Commerce Bancshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.86 and a 52-week high of $72.75. The company has a market capitalization of $8.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 0.77.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.07. Commerce Bancshares had a net margin of 24.15% and a return on equity of 15.93%. The company had revenue of $421.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $412.85 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Commerce Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. Commerce Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.13%.

Insider Activity at Commerce Bancshares

In other news, EVP John K. Handy sold 1,331 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.80, for a total transaction of $84,917.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 41,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,650,762.40. This represents a 3.10 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Patricia R. Kellerhals sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.23, for a total transaction of $124,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,454,999.63. This trade represents a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,109 shares of company stock valued at $2,191,123. 3.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CBSH has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Commerce Bancshares from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Piper Sandler set a $68.50 target price on shares of Commerce Bancshares and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Commerce Bancshares from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Commerce Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Commerce Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.50.

About Commerce Bancshares

Commerce Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Commerce Bank that provides retail, mortgage banking, corporate, investment, trust, and asset management products and services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Consumer, Commercial, and Wealth.