Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.07 EPS

Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.07, Zacks reports. Great Southern Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.28% and a net margin of 19.80%.

Great Southern Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of GSBC traded up $3.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $66.97. 86,033 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 51,049. The stock has a market cap of $749.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.12 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.85 and a 200-day moving average of $60.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. Great Southern Bancorp has a 52 week low of $47.57 and a 52 week high of $66.97.

Great Southern Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 29th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 29th. Great Southern Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 28.57%.

Insider Transactions at Great Southern Bancorp

In other Great Southern Bancorp news, VP John M. Bugh sold 1,750 shares of Great Southern Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.72, for a total value of $101,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $103,318.80. This trade represents a 49.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Mark A. Maples sold 1,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.93, for a total transaction of $86,898.50. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 27.93% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Great Southern Bancorp

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Great Southern Bancorp by 8.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $801,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Great Southern Bancorp by 4.8% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Great Southern Bancorp by 68.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $755,000 after acquiring an additional 5,546 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in Great Southern Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,146,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Great Southern Bancorp by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 13,580 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $798,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. 41.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GSBC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Great Southern Bancorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Great Southern Bancorp from $63.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Great Southern Bancorp in a report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $59.50.

About Great Southern Bancorp

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.