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

SmartFinancial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SMBK) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $40.50.

Several research firms have commented on SMBK. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on SmartFinancial from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Hovde Group upgraded shares of SmartFinancial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of SmartFinancial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd.

SmartFinancial Trading Down 4.5%

SMBK opened at $39.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $667.53 million, a P/E ratio of 18.32 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. SmartFinancial has a 12 month low of $26.31 and a 12 month high of $43.90. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.42.

SmartFinancial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. SmartFinancial’s payout ratio is 10.74%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Steven B. Tucker sold 10,625 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the director directly owned 49,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,897,231.14. This represents a 17.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Wesley Miller Welborn purchased 835 shares of SmartFinancial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $43.13 per share, with a total value of $36,013.55. Following the acquisition, the chairman directly owned 96,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,160,664.84. This trade represents a 0.87% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 7.62% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SmartFinancial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of SmartFinancial by 150.9% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 51,972 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,615,000 after purchasing an additional 31,255 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in SmartFinancial by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,481 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in SmartFinancial by 263.2% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 42,385 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,317,000 after acquiring an additional 30,715 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in SmartFinancial during the second quarter worth approximately $295,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SmartFinancial by 129.2% during the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 47,633 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,609,000 after acquiring an additional 26,855 shares during the period. 58.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.