Investors Purchase High Volume of Bank OZK Put Options (NASDAQ:OZK)

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors acquired 5,033 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 281% compared to the typical volume of 1,321 put options.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ OZK traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $46.99. 94,124 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 897,392. The company has a market cap of $5.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.60 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $45.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.78. Bank OZK has a 52 week low of $35.71 and a 52 week high of $53.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The company reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by ($0.07). Bank OZK had a return on equity of 13.00% and a net margin of 25.81%.The business had revenue of $449.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $447.93 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bank OZK will post 6.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 13th. This is a positive change from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Bank OZK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.03%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vident Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Bank OZK during the first quarter valued at about $344,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bank OZK by 119.3% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 46,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 25,067 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Bank OZK by 37.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 41,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,792,000 after purchasing an additional 11,310 shares during the period. Amundi grew its holdings in Bank OZK by 134.9% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 368,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,010,000 after buying an additional 211,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Bank OZK by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,029,000 after buying an additional 5,717 shares during the last quarter. 86.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup restated a “sell” rating on shares of Bank OZK in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Bank OZK from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Bank OZK in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Bank OZK from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bank OZK in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.75.

Bank OZK Company Profile

Bank OZK, formerly known as Bank of the Ozarks, is a regional commercial bank headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Established in 1903, the bank offers a full suite of banking products and services to both individual and corporate clients. Through a combination of organic growth and targeted acquisitions, Bank OZK has built a diversified lending portfolio and a strong deposit franchise.

The bank’s core operations focus on commercial real estate lending, including acquisition, development and construction financing.