Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH - Free Report) by 30.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 271,678 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 120,954 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.21% of Commerce Bancshares worth $16,138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Commerce Bancshares in the third quarter valued at $566,000. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares in the third quarter worth about $581,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 19.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 106,934 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,353,000 after acquiring an additional 17,400 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Commerce Bancshares during the second quarter valued at approximately $522,000. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Commerce Bancshares by 15.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 110,423 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,559,000 after acquiring an additional 14,775 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Commerce Bancshares Price Performance

Commerce Bancshares stock traded down $0.77 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $62.82. The company had a trading volume of 299,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 554,367. Commerce Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $47.09 and a 12-month high of $72.75. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $67.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.50. The company has a market capitalization of $8.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.77.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.07. The firm 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%. On average, analysts expect that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Commerce Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. Commerce Bancshares's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.13%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Patricia R. Kellerhals sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.55, for a total transaction of $34,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 22,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,526,265.75. This represents a 2.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman David W. Kemper sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,151,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $71,170,189.32. The trade was a 2.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 39,398 shares of company stock valued at $2,504,665. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CBSH has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Commerce Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Commerce Bancshares from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $66.00 to $64.00 in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Piper Sandler set a $68.50 price objective on shares of Commerce Bancshares and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Commerce Bancshares from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Commerce Bancshares from $62.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.07.

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.