Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.19 EPS

Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.19, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $56.87 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.26 million. Great Southern Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.29% and a net margin of 21.33%.

Great Southern Bancorp Stock Up 5.1%

GSBC traded up $3.96 during trading on Thursday, hitting $81.50. The company had a trading volume of 173,076 shares, compared to its average volume of 85,841. The company has a market cap of $887.58 million, a PE ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Great Southern Bancorp has a 1-year low of $53.76 and a 1-year high of $82.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $73.81 and a 200-day moving average of $67.27.

Great Southern Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 14th. Investors of record on Monday, June 29th were issued a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 29th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Great Southern Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.26%.

Insider Transactions at Great Southern Bancorp

In related news, VP John M. Bugh sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.59, for a total transaction of $168,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,790 shares in the company, valued at $120,986.10. This represents a 58.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Mark A. Maples sold 2,387 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.95, for a total value of $164,583.65. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,187 shares in the company, valued at $81,843.65. The trade was a 66.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 13,687 shares of company stock valued at $938,407. 29.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Great Southern Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Great Southern Bancorp by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 44,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,764,000 after acquiring an additional 8,149 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Great Southern Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $246,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Great Southern Bancorp by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 47,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,949,000 after purchasing an additional 8,149 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Great Southern Bancorp by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 15,923 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $980,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the period. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP raised its stake in shares of Great Southern Bancorp by 69.0% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 26,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,653,000 after purchasing an additional 10,963 shares in the last quarter. 41.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Great Southern Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Wall Street Zen cut Great Southern Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Great Southern Bancorp from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Great Southern Bancorp from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Great Southern Bancorp has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.00.

Great Southern Bancorp Company Profile

Great Southern Bancorp, Inc (NASDAQ: GSBC) is the bank holding company for Great Southern Bank, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Springfield, Missouri. Through its subsidiary, the company provides a broad spectrum of financial products and services designed to meet the needs of individuals, small and mid-sized businesses, and professional clients across its regional footprint.

Great Southern Bank’s core business activities include deposit-taking, lending and treasury management.