Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) Now Covered by Wells Fargo & Company

Research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) in a note issued to investors on Monday. The brokerage set an “equal weight” rating and a $56.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 9.17% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on OZK. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Bank OZK from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Bank OZK from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank OZK from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Bank OZK from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Bank OZK from $53.00 to $52.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.88.

Bank OZK Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ OZK traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $51.30. 31,931 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,257,968. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.48 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $50.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.54. Bank OZK has a 12 month low of $42.37 and a 12 month high of $53.66.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $430.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $436.42 million. Bank OZK had a return on equity of 11.87% and a net margin of 24.95%.Bank OZK’s revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.47 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bank OZK will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, June 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank OZK

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 37.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 41,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,792,000 after acquiring an additional 11,310 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Bank OZK by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 46,690 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,029,000 after purchasing an additional 5,717 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Bank OZK by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 60,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Bank OZK by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 349,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,197,000 after purchasing an additional 26,676 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 17,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $770,000 after buying an additional 1,756 shares during the period. 86.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Bank OZK

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.