SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $47.50.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of SmartFinancial in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Benchmark started coverage on SmartFinancial in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on SmartFinancial from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st.

SmartFinancial Stock Down 1.3%

SmartFinancial stock opened at $48.01 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $44.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. SmartFinancial has a twelve month low of $32.63 and a twelve month high of $49.06. The company has a market capitalization of $820.79 million, a P/E ratio of 22.43 and a beta of 0.70.

SmartFinancial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.09 dividend. This is an increase from SmartFinancial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. SmartFinancial’s payout ratio is 11.54%.

Insider Transactions at SmartFinancial

In other SmartFinancial news, Director Cathy G. Ackermann purchased 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $42.12 per share, with a total value of $126,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 19,831 shares in the company, valued at approximately $835,281.72. This trade represents a 17.82% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Victor Lynn Barrett purchased 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $43.78 per share, for a total transaction of $131,340.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 151,724 shares in the company, valued at $6,642,476.72. This represents a 2.02% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased a total of 6,290 shares of company stock worth $269,677 over the last 90 days. 6.93% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SmartFinancial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 375.5% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 152,167 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,629,000 after acquiring an additional 120,167 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 728,151 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,934,000 after purchasing an additional 80,639 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 55.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 163,240 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,038,000 after purchasing an additional 58,560 shares in the last quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of SmartFinancial during the 4th quarter valued at $2,158,000. Finally, North Reef Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of SmartFinancial by 59.5% during the 4th quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 134,871 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,989,000 after purchasing an additional 50,301 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 58.78% of the company’s stock.

About SmartFinancial

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.