Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH)

Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) by 2.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,150 shares during the quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Commerce Bancshares were worth $2,486,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Commerce Bancshares by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 30,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,724,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 0.3% during the first quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC now owns 60,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,199,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connectus Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Connectus Wealth LLC now owns 17,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $940,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jonathan M. Kemper sold 19,626 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.66, for a total transaction of $1,249,391.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 997,112 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,476,149.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Robert S. Holmes sold 3,795 shares of Commerce Bancshares stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.75, for a total transaction of $245,726.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 50,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,256,471.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jonathan M. Kemper sold 19,626 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.66, for a total transaction of $1,249,391.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 997,112 shares in the company, valued at $63,476,149.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 49,612 shares of company stock worth $3,184,609 in the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Commerce Bancshares Price Performance

Commerce Bancshares stock opened at $61.90 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.02. Commerce Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.91 and a 12 month high of $65.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.02 billion, a PE ratio of 17.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.29 and a beta of 0.75.

Commerce Bancshares (NASDAQ:CBSH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $414.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $406.88 million. Commerce Bancshares had a net margin of 23.62% and a return on equity of 16.50%. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.97 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Commerce Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.96 EPS for the current year.

Commerce Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th. Commerce Bancshares’s payout ratio is 30.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on CBSH shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Commerce Bancshares from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $52.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Commerce Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.00.

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.