Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

SFNC has been the subject of a number of other reports. National Bank Financial set a $21.00 target price on shares of Simmons First National in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Simmons First National in a report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Simmons First National from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded Simmons First National from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $23.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.43.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Shares of Simmons First National stock opened at $18.96 on Thursday. Simmons First National has a 52 week low of $17.00 and a 52 week high of $22.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market cap of $2.75 billion, a PE ratio of -6.84 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $20.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.32.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The bank reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $249.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $238.68 million. Simmons First National had a negative net margin of 27.83% and a positive return on equity of 6.73%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.39 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Simmons First National will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simmons First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.215 per share. This is an increase from Simmons First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -31.05%.

Simmons First National announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 17th that permits the company to repurchase $175.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simmons First National

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 197.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Simmons First National by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,884 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 495 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Simmons First National by 42.5% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,175 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Simmons First National by 32.0% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,658 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 644 shares during the period. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP purchased a new position in Simmons First National during the 4th quarter valued at about $66,000. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Simmons First National Company Profile

Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Through its primary operating subsidiary, Simmons Bank, the company maintains a network of more than 200 branches across Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma and North Carolina. Simmons First National offers a full suite of financial services to individuals, small businesses and commercial clients, emphasizing relationship-driven community banking.

The company’s core business activities span deposit-taking, lending and payment services.