Bank of America Corp DE Increases Position in Bank OZK $OZK

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Bank OZK position by 33% in the first quarter, adding 192,237 shares to own 774,253 shares valued at approximately $35.5 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 86.18% of Bank OZK.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $56.88; individual targets range from $51 to $61.
• Bank OZK reported quarterly EPS of $1.49, narrowly beating estimates, and approved a $200 million share-repurchase plan. It also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.48 per share, representing a 3.7% annualized yield.

Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) by 33.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 774,253 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 192,237 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.69% of Bank OZK worth $35,530,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. BOKF NA purchased a new position in Bank OZK in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its position in shares of Bank OZK by 100.5% during the fourth quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 766 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in Bank OZK in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Bank OZK by 111.2% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 830 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bank OZK during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on OZK. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $61.00 price objective on shares of Bank OZK in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Bank OZK from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Bank OZK from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Bank OZK from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Bank OZK from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $56.88.

Bank OZK Stock Up 0.5%

OZK stock opened at $52.49 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $51.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Bank OZK has a 1-year low of $42.37 and a 1-year high of $53.66. The firm has a market cap of $5.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.68 and a beta of 0.89.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $430.02 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $436.42 million. Bank OZK had a net margin of 24.95% and a return on equity of 11.87%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.47 EPS. Research analysts predict that Bank OZK will post 5.86 EPS for the current year.

Bank OZK declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, June 29th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 13th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 13th. This is an increase from Bank OZK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Bank OZK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.74%.

About Bank OZK

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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