Acadian Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in SmartFinancial, Inc. $SMBK

Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 158,723 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,132 shares during the quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.93% of SmartFinancial worth $5,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SmartFinancial during the second quarter worth about $5,996,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in SmartFinancial during the first quarter worth about $2,196,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of SmartFinancial by 150.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 51,972 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,615,000 after acquiring an additional 31,255 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in SmartFinancial by 263.2% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 42,385 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,317,000 after purchasing an additional 30,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in SmartFinancial by 45.9% in the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 87,634 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 27,586 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.78% of the company’s stock.

SmartFinancial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SMBK opened at $35.85 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $610.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.75 and a beta of 0.83. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $26.31 and a 52-week high of $37.92.

SmartFinancial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. SmartFinancial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on SMBK shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $44.00 price target (up previously from $42.00) on shares of SmartFinancial in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on SmartFinancial from $37.00 to $39.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of SmartFinancial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Hovde Group increased their target price on SmartFinancial from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of SmartFinancial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.10.

About SmartFinancial

SmartFinancial, Inc operates as the bank holding company for SmartBank that provides various financial services to individuals and corporate customers in Tennessee, Alabama, and Florida. It operates through Commercial Real Estate, Consumer Real Estate, Construction and Land Development, Commercial and Industrial, Leases, and Consumer and Other segments.