Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Commerce Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBSH) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,650,000 shares, a growth of 22.2% from the September 30th total of 1,350,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 594,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Insider Activity at Commerce Bancshares

In other Commerce Bancshares news, SVP Patricia R. Kellerhals sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.82, for a total transaction of $91,230.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,543,672.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Patricia R. Kellerhals sold 1,500 shares of Commerce Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.82, for a total value of $91,230.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 25,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,543,672.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman David W. Kemper sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.78, for a total value of $1,853,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 1,151,994 shares in the company, valued at $71,170,189.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 36,366 shares of company stock valued at $2,254,028. 3.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Commerce Bancshares

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Commerce Bancshares in the first quarter valued at $270,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 93.1% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Commerce Bancshares by 2.1% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 29,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,547,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Commerce Bancshares in the first quarter valued at approximately $475,000. Finally, Kesler Norman & Wride LLC increased its stake in Commerce Bancshares by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC now owns 47,463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,525,000 after buying an additional 1,246 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CBSH has been the topic of a number of research 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 Commerce Bancshares from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $66.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Monday, September 30th. 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. 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 report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Commerce Bancshares from $52.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Seven 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.com, Commerce Bancshares currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.79.

Commerce Bancshares Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ CBSH traded up $0.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $62.45. The company had a trading volume of 633,309 shares, compared to its average volume of 529,901. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $61.20 and a 200 day moving average of $58.56. Commerce Bancshares has a 1-year low of $40.91 and a 1-year high of $65.86.

Commerce Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given 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 1.73%. Commerce Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 28.13%.

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.