SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $43.82 and last traded at $42.93, with a volume of 11095 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SMBK shares. Hovde Group upgraded SmartFinancial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of SmartFinancial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of SmartFinancial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of SmartFinancial from $37.00 to $39.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, SmartFinancial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.50.

SmartFinancial Trading Up 0.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $727.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.96 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.40 and its 200 day moving average is $36.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

SmartFinancial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. SmartFinancial’s payout ratio is 10.74%.

SmartFinancial declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Friday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at SmartFinancial

In related news, Director Steven B. Tucker sold 10,625 shares of SmartFinancial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.01, for a total value of $403,856.25. Following the sale, the director owned 49,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,897,231.14. The trade was a 17.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SmartFinancial

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMBK. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 209.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,105 shares of the bank’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 1,424 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its holdings in SmartFinancial by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 132,067 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,885,000 after acquiring an additional 16,367 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in SmartFinancial by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,860 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $217,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. LeConte Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. LeConte Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,322 shares of the bank’s stock worth $752,000 after purchasing an additional 847 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 801.7% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 34,607 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,280,000 after buying an additional 30,769 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.78% of the company’s stock.

SmartFinancial Company Profile

SmartFinancial, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, operating through its primary subsidiary, SmartBank. Incorporated in 2006, the company provides a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses and public entities across its regional footprint. SmartFinancial’s network of branch offices and digital platforms combines community-banking relationships with modern technology to serve its customers’ evolving needs.

Through SmartBank, the company offers a broad range of deposit products, including checking, savings and certificate of deposit accounts, alongside consumer and commercial lending solutions.