Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) Cut to "Underweight" at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley downgraded Bank OZK to “underweight” from “equal weight” and set a $56 price target, implying approximately 11% upside from the stock’s $50.43 opening price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Bank OZK has an average “hold” rating and a consensus price target of $56.88, with three buy, five hold, and three sell ratings.
• The bank recently authorized a $200 million share-repurchase program, while its latest quarterly results slightly exceeded EPS estimates despite revenue falling short of expectations.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $56.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would suggest a potential upside of 11.05% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on OZK. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Bank OZK in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Bank OZK from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of Bank OZK in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank OZK from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Bank OZK from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank OZK currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $56.88.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

Shares of OZK opened at $50.43 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.34 and a beta of 0.88. Bank OZK has a one year low of $42.37 and a one year high of $53.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $50.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.78.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. Bank OZK had a return on equity of 11.87% and a net margin of 24.95%.The company had revenue of $430.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $436.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.47 EPS. Bank OZK's revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Bank OZK will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, June 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OZK. BOKF NA bought a new stake in Bank OZK in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Bank OZK in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 111.2% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 830 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares during the period. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Bank OZK in the 4th quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. 86.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bank OZK Company Profile

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.

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