Waterford Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. $CBSH

Waterford Advisors LLC bought a new position in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 44,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,577,000. Commerce Bancshares makes up 1.0% of Waterford Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Commerce Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $85,282,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in Commerce Bancshares in the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,830,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Commerce Bancshares by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,690,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $768,877,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098,142 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Commerce Bancshares by 1,433.7% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,145,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,965,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,980 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 37.4% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,352,406 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $123,125,000 after purchasing an additional 640,928 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Commerce Bancshares Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ CBSH opened at $54.76 on Friday. Commerce Bancshares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.99 and a fifty-two week high of $63.19. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $52.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $52.07. The firm has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.60.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $475.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $481.94 million. Commerce Bancshares had a return on equity of 14.78% and a net margin of 26.37%.Commerce Bancshares’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Commerce Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Commerce Bancshares’s payout ratio is 26.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CBSH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Hovde Group reduced their target price on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $63.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $60.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $58.50 price target (up from $56.00) on shares of Commerce Bancshares in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Commerce Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Commerce Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.30.

Commerce Bancshares Profile

Commerce Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company primarily engaged in providing a broad range of banking and financial services across the Midwest. Through its principal subsidiary, Commerce Bank, the company offers commercial and consumer banking, treasury management, trust and wealth advisory, and mortgage lending. Its diversified product suite includes deposit and loan products, cash management solutions, capital markets services, and private banking designed to meet the needs of individuals, small businesses, and large corporations.

The company’s commercial banking group delivers tailored credit facilities, equipment and inventory financing, asset-based lending, and merchant services.