Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Decreases Stock Holdings in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc trimmed its position in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) by 19.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 50,291 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,171 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc's holdings in Bank OZK were worth $2,239,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 11,184 shares of the company's stock valued at $498,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Bank OZK by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 46,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,085,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in Bank OZK by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,509 shares of the company's stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Bank OZK by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 106,878 shares of the company's stock worth $4,759,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in Bank OZK by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 31,253 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,392,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. 86.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on OZK. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Bank OZK from $59.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Bank OZK from $48.00 to $40.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Bank OZK from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Bank OZK from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $49.13.

Bank OZK Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:OZK traded down $0.39 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $45.98. The stock had a trading volume of 67,633 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,331,889. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $42.80 and a 200 day moving average of $45.91. The company has a market capitalization of $5.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.49 and a beta of 0.85. Bank OZK has a one year low of $35.71 and a one year high of $53.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The company reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.05. Bank OZK had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 25.83%. The firm had revenue of $409.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $403.05 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.51 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Bank OZK will post 6.02 EPS for the current year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 14th were given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 14th. This is a boost from Bank OZK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Bank OZK's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.20%.

Bank OZK Company Profile

Bank OZK provides various retail and commercial banking services for individuals and businesses in the United States. The company offers deposit services, including non-interest bearing checking, interest bearing transaction, business sweep, savings, money market, individual retirement, and other accounts, as well as time and reciprocal deposits.