Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.31 EPS

Great Southern Bancorp (NASDAQ:GSBC) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.31, Zacks reports. Great Southern Bancorp had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 11.33%. The company had revenue of $55.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.75 million.

Great Southern Bancorp Price Performance

GSBC stock opened at $67.58 on Thursday. Great Southern Bancorp has a 1 year low of $50.95 and a 1 year high of $68.74. The company has a market cap of $740.88 million, a P/E ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $63.39 and a 200 day moving average of $61.71. 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 Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 30th were paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 30th. Great Southern Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on GSBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Great Southern Bancorp from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Great Southern Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Great Southern Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Great Southern Bancorp news, Director William V. Turner sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.70, for a total value of $358,200.00. Following the sale, the director owned 199,112 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,886,986.40. This represents a 2.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Thomas J. Carlson sold 680 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.17, for a total transaction of $42,955.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 17,206 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,086,903.02. This trade represents a 3.80% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,680 shares of company stock worth $885,376. 29.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Great Southern Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in Great Southern Bancorp by 177.7% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 48,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,954,000 after purchasing an additional 30,863 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Great Southern Bancorp by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 47,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,949,000 after purchasing an additional 8,149 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Great Southern Bancorp by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 44,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,764,000 after purchasing an additional 8,149 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in Great Southern Bancorp by 20.6% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 42,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,590,000 after purchasing an additional 7,208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Great Southern Bancorp by 328.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 32,321 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,980,000 after purchasing an additional 24,786 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 41.66% of the company’s stock.

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.