Hsbc Holdings PLC Grows Position in Bank OZK $OZK

Key Points

• HSBC Holdings PLC increased its stake in Bank OZK by 234.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 91,598 shares worth about $4.25 million.
• Bank OZK has mixed analyst sentiment, with a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $56.25; recent firms mostly kept neutral ratings while a few upgraded the stock.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend to $0.48 per share and also approved a $200 million share buyback program, signaling confidence in its valuation and cash generation.

Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) by 234.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,598 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 64,196 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned approximately 0.08% of Bank OZK worth $4,250,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in Bank OZK by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 11,336 shares of the company's stock valued at $539,000 after buying an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management boosted its position 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 period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC boosted its position 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 period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake 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 in the last quarter. 86.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

OZK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Bank OZK from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Bank OZK in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Bank OZK from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Bank OZK from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Bank OZK from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank OZK currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $56.25.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:OZK opened at $50.17 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $49.27 and a 200 day moving average of $47.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $5.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.17 and a beta of 0.89. Bank OZK has a 52 week low of $42.37 and a 52 week high of $53.66.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.46 by ($0.02). Bank OZK had a net margin of 25.27% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The company had revenue of $424.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $422.62 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.47 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bank OZK will post 6.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 13th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 13th. This is an increase from Bank OZK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Bank OZK's dividend payout ratio is 30.62%.

Bank OZK declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, June 29th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign 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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