Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Stock Rating Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Simmons First National from “hold” to “strong buy.” Analysts overall have a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with an average price target of $25.69.
• Simmons First National reported quarterly EPS of $0.54, narrowly beating estimates of $0.53, while revenue reached $251.17 million and increased 8% year over year.
• SFNC shares opened at $22.77, with a market capitalization of $3.29 billion and a 52-week trading range of $17.00 to $24.32. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.58% of the stock.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Monday, Zacks reports.

SFNC has been the topic of several other reports. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Friday, July 17th. National Bank Financial set a $26.00 target price on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Simmons First National from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Simmons First National has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $25.69.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Shares of SFNC opened at $22.77 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.84 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $22.87 and a 200-day moving average of $22.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Simmons First National has a 52 week low of $17.00 and a 52 week high of $24.32.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 15th. The bank reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $251.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $254.03 million. Simmons First National had a return on equity of 8.73% and a net margin of 18.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Simmons First National will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Simmons First National

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Simmons First National by 17,016.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 125,294 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,437,000 after purchasing an additional 124,562 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Simmons First National by 24.7% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 624,613 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,149,000 after purchasing an additional 123,732 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 213.2% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 206,793 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,022,000 after buying an additional 140,769 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 151.6% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 405,336 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,884,000 after buying an additional 244,220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 33.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 625,391 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,164,000 after buying an additional 157,061 shares during the last quarter. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Simmons First National

Simmons First National Corporation is a financial holding company headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Its principal subsidiary, Simmons Bank, provides banking and financial services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

The bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, residential and commercial real estate financing, treasury and cash-management services, credit cards, and online and mobile banking. It also provides wealth management, trust, investment and insurance services through specialized business lines.

Founded in 1903, Simmons has expanded from its Arkansas roots into a regional banking franchise serving customers through branches and financial centers across Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas.

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