California State Teachers Retirement System Acquires 31,831 Shares of Bank OZK $OZK

Key Points

• California State Teachers Retirement System increased its Bank OZK stake by 31.4%, adding 31,831 shares to own 133,186 shares valued at approximately $6.1 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 86.18% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating on Bank OZK, with an average price target of $56.38. Recent targets range from $51 to $61.
• Bank OZK reported quarterly EPS of $1.49, slightly exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 0.5% year over year. The bank raised its quarterly dividend to $0.48 per share and authorized a $200 million share-repurchase program.

California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) by 31.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 133,186 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 31,831 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.12% of Bank OZK worth $6,112,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of Bank OZK by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,446 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Kera Capital Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 11,336 shares of the company's stock worth $539,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the period. Cardinal Capital Management grew its stake in Bank OZK by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 48,979 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,254,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Bank OZK by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,403 shares of the company's stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Bank OZK by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 38,261 shares of the company's stock worth $1,761,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Bank OZK in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Bank OZK from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Bank OZK from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Bank OZK from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Bank OZK from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $56.38.

Bank OZK Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ OZK opened at $51.60 on Thursday. Bank OZK has a 52-week low of $42.37 and a 52-week high of $53.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 0.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $50.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.50. The stock has a market cap of $5.77 billion, a PE ratio of 8.53 and a beta of 0.89.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. Bank OZK had a net margin of 24.95% and a return on equity of 11.87%. The business had revenue of $430.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $436.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.47 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Bank OZK will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

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

Bank OZK announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, June 29th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding OZK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source