StockNews.com Upgrades Park National (NYSE:PRK) to “Hold”

Park National (NYSE:PRK) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on PRK. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $130.00 price target (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Park National in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Piper Sandler started coverage on Park National in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company.

Park National Price Performance

Shares of Park National stock opened at $137.05 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.35 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $134.25 and a 200 day moving average of $130.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Park National has a 12 month low of $90.28 and a 12 month high of $144.01.

Park National (NYSE:PRK) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $121.82 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $118.29 million. Park National had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 22.03%. On average, research analysts expect that Park National will post 7.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Park National

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PRK. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Park National by 621.0% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 38,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,641,000 after buying an additional 33,175 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Park National by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,701,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,009,000 after purchasing an additional 12,925 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in Park National in the third quarter worth approximately $1,087,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Park National by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 457,745 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,818,000 after purchasing an additional 10,266 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Park National by 6,882.5% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 9,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,271,000 after purchasing an additional 9,429 shares in the last quarter. 62.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Park National

Park National Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Park National Bank that provides commercial banking and trust services in small and medium population areas. The company offers deposits for demand, savings, and time accounts; trust and wealth management services; cash management services; safe deposit operations; electronic funds transfers; Internet and mobile banking solutions with bill pay service; credit cards; and various additional banking-related services.