SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Zacks Research

SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Hovde Group raised 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, SmartFinancial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.50.

SmartFinancial Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ SMBK opened at $38.31 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $39.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.54. SmartFinancial has a 1 year low of $26.31 and a 1 year high of $43.90. The firm has a market cap of $652.34 million, a P/E ratio of 17.90 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90.

SmartFinancial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Friday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Wesley Miller Welborn purchased 835 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $43.13 per share, with a total value of $36,013.55. Following the purchase, the chairman directly owned 96,468 shares in the company, valued at $4,160,664.84. This represents a 0.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven B. Tucker sold 10,625 shares of SmartFinancial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.01, for a total value of $403,856.25. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 7.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of SmartFinancial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in SmartFinancial during the second quarter worth approximately $5,996,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of SmartFinancial by 18.5% in the second quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 103,836 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,508,000 after acquiring an additional 16,202 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. boosted its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 58.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 19,700 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 7,285 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of SmartFinancial by 29.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,229 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,413,000 after purchasing an additional 36,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in SmartFinancial by 129.2% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 47,633 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,609,000 after purchasing an additional 26,855 shares in the last quarter. 58.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.