Lazard Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK)

Lazard Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) by 36.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,576 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,873 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Bank OZK were worth $2,028,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Bank OZK in the fourth quarter worth about $53,114,000. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its stake in Bank OZK by 19.3% in the fourth quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 7,102,657 shares of the company's stock worth $316,281,000 after purchasing an additional 1,149,880 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Bank OZK by 30.4% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,945,480 shares of the company's stock worth $131,162,000 after purchasing an additional 686,775 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Bank OZK in the fourth quarter worth about $14,077,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Bank OZK by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,811,354 shares of the company's stock worth $125,190,000 after purchasing an additional 314,488 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Bank OZK Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:OZK traded down $0.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $44.44. 608,636 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,336,879. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.04 billion, a PE ratio of 7.24 and a beta of 0.85. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $42.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.91. Bank OZK has a 12-month low of $35.71 and a 12-month high of $53.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The company reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $409.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $403.05 million. Bank OZK had a net margin of 25.83% and a return on equity of 13.90%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.51 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Bank OZK will post 6.02 EPS for the current year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.87%. This is a positive change from Bank OZK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 14th. Bank OZK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.20%.

About Bank OZK

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.