Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Acquires 17,092 Shares of BancFirst Corporation $BANF

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BancFirst Corporation (NASDAQ:BANF) by 37.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 62,605 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,092 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.’s holdings in BancFirst were worth $7,916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of BancFirst during the second quarter worth about $653,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in BancFirst by 49.4% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 45,208 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,717,000 after purchasing an additional 14,947 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in BancFirst in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,326,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in BancFirst by 648.6% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 164,160 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $20,294,000 after purchasing an additional 142,232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in BancFirst by 14.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 113,346 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,333,000 after purchasing an additional 14,333 shares during the last quarter. 51.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BANF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of BancFirst from $120.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of BancFirst in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of BancFirst in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $124.00.

BancFirst Trading Down 0.7%

BANF stock opened at $106.06 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a PE ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. BancFirst Corporation has a one year low of $97.02 and a one year high of $138.77. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $112.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $116.00.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by ($0.03). BancFirst had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 13.68%. The business had revenue of $181.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $173.76 million. As a group, analysts predict that BancFirst Corporation will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BancFirst Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. BancFirst’s payout ratio is currently 27.53%.

BancFirst Company Profile

BancFirst Corporation is a regional banking holding company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. As the largest state‐chartered bank in Oklahoma, BancFirst offers a comprehensive suite of financial services to individuals, businesses and government entities. Its core business activities include commercial and consumer banking, mortgage lending, treasury management, equipment financing and electronic banking solutions.

The bank operates a network of more than 60 branches across Oklahoma, serving urban centers such as Oklahoma City and Tulsa, as well as rural communities throughout the state.