Legal & General Group Plc Makes New $528,000 Investment in Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. $SMBC

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBC) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 6,928 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock, valued at approximately $528,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SMBC. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 124.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 564 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern Missouri Bancorp by 105.7% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 718 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Southern Missouri Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern Missouri Bancorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $93,000. 49.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ SMBC opened at $73.52 on Wednesday. Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. has a 1 year low of $47.60 and a 1 year high of $79.86. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.21. The company has a market cap of $810.19 million, a P/E ratio of 11.43 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Southern Missouri Bancorp (NASDAQ:SMBC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The savings and loans company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.31. Southern Missouri Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.72% and a net margin of 22.63%.The firm had revenue of $51.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $51.14 million. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Missouri Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This is an increase from Southern Missouri Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Southern Missouri Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SMBC shares. Stephens cut Southern Missouri Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Southern Missouri Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $83.00 price target (up from $79.00) on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern Missouri Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.67.

About Southern Missouri Bancorp

Southern Missouri Bancorp, Inc (NASDAQ: SMBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in West Plains, Missouri, serving as the parent of Southern Bank. The company focuses on delivering community banking services to individual and commercial customers across southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. It operates branch offices in local markets and provides a comprehensive suite of deposit and lending products tailored to both urban and rural communities.

Through its subsidiary, Southern Bank, the company offers deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside digital and mobile banking platforms.