31,489 Shares in Bank OZK $OZK Bought by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought 31,489 Bank OZK shares worth approximately $1.64 million in the second quarter. Institutional and hedge-fund investors collectively own 86.18% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with Bank OZK holding a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $56.88; ratings range from Buy to Sell.
• Bank OZK exceeded quarterly EPS estimates, raised its dividend to $0.48 per share, and authorized a $200 million share-repurchase program covering up to 3.4% of outstanding shares.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 31,489 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,640,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ranger Investment Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank OZK in the second quarter worth about $13,240,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,308,000. Foster & Motley Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,055,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI acquired a new position in Bank OZK during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $229,000. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor acquired a new position in Bank OZK during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,038,000. 86.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Bank OZK from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Bank OZK from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Bank OZK from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank OZK from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Bank OZK in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Bank OZK presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $56.88.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

Shares of OZK opened at $50.43 on Tuesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $50.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.78. Bank OZK has a 52-week low of $42.37 and a 52-week high of $53.66. The firm has a market cap of $5.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.34 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

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

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 13th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a positive change from Bank OZK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Bank OZK's payout ratio is currently 31.74%.

Bank OZK announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

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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