Stephens Inc. AR Lowers Holdings in Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)

Stephens Inc. AR lowered its holdings in shares of Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 128,721 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 4,049 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Simmons First National were worth $2,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 105.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 3,888 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Simmons First National by 13.7% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,129 shares of the bank’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Simmons First National by 29.0% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,648 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $100,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Simmons First National by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,778 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LMR Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Simmons First National in the 3rd quarter worth $205,000. Institutional investors own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert A. Fehlman sold 15,270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.02, for a total value of $366,785.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 156,357 shares in the company, valued at $3,755,695.14. This trade represents a 8.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Stephens cut their price target on Simmons First National from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Simmons First National stock opened at $23.13 on Wednesday. Simmons First National Co. has a 52-week low of $16.03 and a 52-week high of $25.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $22.75 and its 200 day moving average is $22.29. The company has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.12 and a beta of 0.86.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $208.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $208.67 million. Simmons First National had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 5.10%. The business’s revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simmons First National Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.2125 dividend. This is a boost from Simmons First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. Simmons First National’s payout ratio is 69.42%.

Simmons First National Company Profile

Simmons First National Corporation operates as the holding company for Simmons Bank that provides banking and other financial products and services to individuals and businesses. The company offers checking, savings, and time deposits; consumer, real estate, and commercial loans; agricultural finance, equipment, and small business administration lending; trust and fiduciary services; credit cards; investment management products; treasury management; insurance products; and securities and investment services.