SmartFinancial (NASDAQ:SMBK) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $46.29 and last traded at $44.4940, with a volume of 99912 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.46.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on SMBK. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of SmartFinancial in a report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research lowered shares of SmartFinancial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of SmartFinancial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has 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.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.88.

SmartFinancial Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $760.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.04.

SmartFinancial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This is a positive change from SmartFinancial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. SmartFinancial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Cathy G. Ackermann acquired 3,000 shares of SmartFinancial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $42.12 per share, for a total transaction of $126,360.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 19,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $835,281.72. This trade represents a 17.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Victor Lynn Barrett bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $43.78 per share, for a total transaction of $131,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 151,724 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,642,476.72. The trade was a 2.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders bought a total of 6,290 shares of company stock worth $269,677 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 6.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Equitable Trust Co. grew its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 11,475 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 46,590 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,821,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 13.2% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,708 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $106,000 after buying an additional 316 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of 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. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,481 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. 58.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.