Southside Bancshares (NASDAQ:SBSI) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Southside Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBSI)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $33.30 and last traded at $33.2550, with a volume of 24314 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $31.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Southside Bancshares from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southside Bancshares currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.50.

Southside Bancshares Trading Up 5.1%

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50 and a beta of 0.64.

Southside Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 20th. Southside Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is 62.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Herbert C. Buie acquired 1,807 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $30.68 per share, with a total value of $55,438.76. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 389,288 shares in the company, valued at $11,943,355.84. This represents a 0.47% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 6.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southside Bancshares

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBSI. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Southside Bancshares by 388.2% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 251,429 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,103,000 after buying an additional 199,930 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southside Bancshares in the 1st quarter worth about $1,520,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Southside Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,339,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southside Bancshares by 14.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 352,786 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,382,000 after buying an additional 45,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Southside Bancshares by 16.9% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 290,213 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,541,000 after buying an additional 42,057 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.70% of the company’s stock.

Southside Bancshares Company Profile

Southside Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Tyler, Texas, and operates through its principal subsidiary, Southside Bank. The company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services, including deposit accounts, commercial and consumer loans, mortgage lending, and digital banking solutions designed to meet the needs of individuals, small businesses, and mid-market companies.

Southside Bank’s commercial banking division offers lending and treasury management services to support business growth and operational efficiency.