Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Commerce Bancshares to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $63.00 target price (up from $62.00) on shares of Commerce Bancshares in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Commerce Bancshares from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $61.00 price target on Commerce Bancshares and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $60.50 price objective on Commerce Bancshares and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.64.

Commerce Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CBSH opened at $55.04 on Friday. Commerce Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $46.99 and a fifty-two week high of $60.92. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.48. The firm has a market cap of $7.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.61.

Commerce Bancshares shares are going to split on the morning of Tuesday, December 1st. The 1.05-1 split was recently announced. The newly minted shares will be payable to shareholders after the market closes on Monday, November 30th.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.01. Commerce Bancshares had a net margin of 26.06% and a return on equity of 14.27%. The firm had revenue of $494.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $496.75 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.06 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Commerce Bancshares will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Commerce Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.2750 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. Commerce Bancshares’s payout ratio is 26.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Commerce Bancshares news, SVP Douglas Neff sold 666 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.15, for a total value of $38,727.90. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $683,029.90. This trade represents a 5.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP David Orf sold 642 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.35, for a total transaction of $38,744.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 24,962 shares in the company, valued at $1,506,456.70. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Commerce Bancshares

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Commerce Bancshares in the second quarter worth about $755,669,000. Commerce Bank bought a new position in shares of Commerce Bancshares in the second quarter worth about $316,010,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 29.3% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,943,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $193,999,000 after buying an additional 894,183 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 11.0% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,610,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $128,423,000 after buying an additional 257,817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Commerce Bancshares during the 2nd quarter valued at about $83,328,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Commerce Bancshares Company Profile

Commerce Bancshares, Inc is a financial holding company headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. Founded in 1865, the company operates Commerce Bank, which provides banking and related financial services to individuals, businesses, institutions and government entities.

Commerce Bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgages, treasury and payment services, credit cards, investment management, trust services and institutional banking solutions. Its businesses also include capital markets and brokerage services, supporting corporate, municipal and institutional clients.

The bank serves customers primarily through a regional network spanning Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, Oklahoma and Colorado, along with digital banking channels.