Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. Has $3.67 Million Position in SmartFinancial, Inc. $SMBK

Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) by 35.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 102,681 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 57,548 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.60% of SmartFinancial worth $3,669,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SMBK. CSM Advisors LLC bought a new stake in SmartFinancial during the second quarter worth $5,996,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of SmartFinancial by 150.9% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 51,972 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,615,000 after buying an additional 31,255 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 30,715 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in SmartFinancial by 129.2% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 47,633 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,609,000 after buying an additional 26,855 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in SmartFinancial by 3.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 846,978 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,263,000 after acquiring an additional 26,373 shares during the last quarter. 58.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SMBK shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of SmartFinancial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Hovde Group upgraded shares of SmartFinancial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of SmartFinancial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of SmartFinancial from $37.00 to $39.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, SmartFinancial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at SmartFinancial

In related news, Chairman Wesley Miller Welborn bought 835 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $43.13 per share, with a total value of $36,013.55. Following the acquisition, the chairman owned 96,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,160,664.84. This represents a 0.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven B. Tucker sold 10,625 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.01, for a total value of $403,856.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 49,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,897,231.14. The trade was a 17.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 7.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

SmartFinancial Stock Up 0.7%

NASDAQ:SMBK opened at $41.69 on Monday. SmartFinancial, Inc. has a one year low of $26.31 and a one year high of $43.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $709.81 million, a PE ratio of 19.48 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.22.

SmartFinancial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. SmartFinancial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.74%.

SmartFinancial declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Friday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.