BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded BancFirst from “hold” to “strong buy,” while other analysts’ views ranged from neutral to hold. The stock has an overall “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $124.
• BancFirst’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $1.96 versus the $1.80 consensus and revenue of $187.49 million compared with estimates of $178.53 million.
• The stock opened at $115.72, with a market capitalization of approximately $3.89 billion. An insider sold 29,740 shares for about $3.46 million, while institutional investors collectively own 51.72% of the company.

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

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on BANF. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of BancFirst in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen raised BancFirst from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of BancFirst from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $124.00.

BancFirst Price Performance

BancFirst stock opened at $115.72 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $113.17 and its 200 day moving average is $112.23. BancFirst has a one year low of $101.48 and a one year high of $138.77. The firm has a market cap of $3.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.62 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The bank reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.16. BancFirst had a net margin of 31.96% and a return on equity of 13.64%. The firm had revenue of $187.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $178.53 million. As a group, research analysts expect that BancFirst will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BancFirst news, Director David E. Rainbolt sold 29,740 shares of BancFirst stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.49, for a total transaction of $3,464,412.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 137,043 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,964,139.07. The trade was a 17.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders sold 44,960 shares of company stock worth $5,216,138. 31.67% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of BancFirst

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in BancFirst by 531.4% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 221 shares of the bank's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in BancFirst by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 295 shares of the bank's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of BancFirst during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of BancFirst during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of BancFirst by 957.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the bank's stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.72% of the company's stock.

BancFirst Company Profile

BancFirst Corporation is a regional banking holding company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. As the largest state‐chartered bank in Oklahoma, BancFirst offers a comprehensive suite of financial services to individuals, businesses and government entities. Its core business activities include commercial and consumer banking, mortgage lending, treasury management, equipment financing and electronic banking solutions.

The bank operates a network of more than 60 branches across Oklahoma, serving urban centers such as Oklahoma City and Tulsa, as well as rural communities throughout the state.

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