UMB Financial (NASDAQ:UMBF) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold” Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of UMB Financial (NASDAQ:UMBF) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Friday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of UMB Financial in a report on Thursday, November 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $156.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on shares of UMB Financial in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $127.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on UMB Financial from $123.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on UMB Financial from $107.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on UMB Financial in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $130.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UMB Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.00.

UMB Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ UMBF opened at $114.61 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.33 and a beta of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $118.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.81. UMB Financial has a fifty-two week low of $76.00 and a fifty-two week high of $129.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76.

UMB Financial (NASDAQ:UMBF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.05. UMB Financial had a net margin of 14.44% and a return on equity of 13.80%. The company had revenue of $716.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $398.83 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that UMB Financial will post 9.21 earnings per share for the current year.

UMB Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This is a boost from UMB Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. UMB Financial’s payout ratio is currently 20.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UMB Financial

In other news, insider Robert Brian Beaird sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.38, for a total transaction of $105,366.52. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,828 shares in the company, valued at $719,058.64. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John Pauls sold 849 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.42, for a total transaction of $93,746.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $715,852.86. The trade was a 11.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 74,603 shares of company stock valued at $8,353,950. Corporate insiders own 8.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in UMB Financial by 767.4% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 21,269 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 18,817 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of UMB Financial by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,689,895 shares of the bank’s stock worth $140,968,000 after buying an additional 100,000 shares during the last quarter. Interval Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of UMB Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,286,000. King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its holdings in UMB Financial by 229.6% in the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 47,116 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,952,000 after acquiring an additional 32,820 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in UMB Financial by 51.2% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 28,935 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,041,000 after acquiring an additional 9,803 shares during the period. 87.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UMB Financial Company Profile

UMB Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company that provides banking services and asset servicing in the United States and internationally. The Commercial Banking segment provides commercial loans and credit card; commercial real estate financing; letters of credit; loan syndication, and consultative service; various business solutions including asset-based lending, mezzanine debt, and minority equity investment; and treasury management service, such as depository service, account reconciliation, cash management tool, accounts payable and receivable solution, electronic fund transfer and automated payment, controlled disbursement, lockbox service, and remote deposit capture service.