Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) Sets New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $73.34 and last traded at $73.06, with a volume of 41957 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $71.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler set a $68.50 target price on Commerce Bancshares and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com raised Commerce Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Commerce Bancshares from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their target price for the company from $66.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $61.79.

Commerce Bancshares Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $63.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.73.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.07. Commerce Bancshares had a net margin of 24.15% and a return on equity of 15.93%. The business had revenue of $421.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $412.85 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commerce Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Commerce Bancshares's payout ratio is 28.13%.

Insider Activity at Commerce Bancshares

In other Commerce Bancshares news, Chairman David W. Kemper sold 30,000 shares of Commerce Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.78, for a total transaction of $1,853,400.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,151,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $71,170,189.32. The trade was a 2.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Patricia R. Kellerhals sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.23, for a total transaction of $124,460.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 23,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,454,999.63. This represents a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 35,109 shares of company stock worth $2,191,123. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Commerce Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 2.1% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,631,645 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $672,004,000 after purchasing an additional 259,127 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 34.6% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 5,518 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $294,000 after acquiring an additional 1,419 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 86.3% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 842 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Commerce Bancshares in the first quarter worth about $90,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 6.2% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 64,627 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,440,000 after purchasing an additional 3,749 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

About Commerce Bancshares

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.