Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) Short Interest Up 7.2% in November

Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,220,000 shares, an increase of 7.2% from the November 15th total of 2,070,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 600,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Patricia R. Kellerhals sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.55, for a total transaction of $34,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 22,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,526,265.75. This represents a 2.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP David L. Roller sold 890 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $64,320.30. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,949 shares in the company, valued at $2,236,684.23. This represents a 2.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 36,816 shares of company stock valued at $2,330,126 in the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Commerce Bancshares

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Commerce Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,226,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Commerce Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth $436,000. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 135,534 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,560,000 after acquiring an additional 9,881 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares during the 2nd quarter valued at $197,000. Finally, Elser Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Commerce Bancshares in the second quarter worth $229,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CBSH shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Commerce Bancshares from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler set a $68.50 price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Commerce Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Commerce Bancshares from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $66.00 to $64.00 in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.07.

Commerce Bancshares Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of CBSH stock traded up $0.28 during trading on Monday, reaching $67.81. 379,225 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 553,274. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $66.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.98. Commerce Bancshares has a twelve month low of $47.09 and a twelve month high of $72.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.66, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.77.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $421.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $412.85 million. Commerce Bancshares had a net margin of 24.15% and a return on equity of 15.93%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Commerce Bancshares will post 3.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commerce Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 3rd. Commerce Bancshares's payout ratio is 28.13%.

Commerce Bancshares Company Profile

Commerce Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Commerce Bank that provides retail, mortgage banking, corporate, investment, trust, and asset management products and services to individuals and businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Consumer, Commercial, and Wealth.