SG Americas Securities LLC Increases Stock Position in Simmons First National Corporation $SFNC

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Simmons First National by 668.3% in Q4, adding 99,310 shares to hold 114,171 shares valued at about $2.15 million (roughly 0.08% of the company).
• Simmons raised its quarterly dividend to $0.215 (annualized $0.86, ~4.4% yield) and authorized a $175 million share buyback program to repurchase up to ~5.7% of outstanding shares.
• The bank beat Q4 EPS estimates ($0.54 vs. $0.49) with revenue up 19.4% year‑over‑year, and carries an average analyst rating of Moderate Buy with a $22.14 average target.

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC - Free Report) by 668.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 114,171 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 99,310 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC owned 0.08% of Simmons First National worth $2,152,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Simmons First National by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 24,221 shares of the bank's stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 4,738 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 19.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,008,857 shares of the bank's stock valued at $19,340,000 after purchasing an additional 166,211 shares during the period. Connors Investor Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Simmons First National by 23.7% during the 3rd quarter. Connors Investor Services Inc. now owns 165,133 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,166,000 after buying an additional 31,629 shares in the last quarter. TD Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 120.6% during the 3rd quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 28,010 shares of the bank's stock worth $537,000 after acquiring an additional 15,311 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in shares of Simmons First National during the third quarter valued at approximately $290,000. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on SFNC. Zacks Research lowered shares of Simmons First National from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Simmons First National from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $23.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Simmons First National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. National Bank Financial set a $21.00 target price on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.14.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SFNC opened at $19.52 on Friday. Simmons First National Corporation has a 12-month low of $17.00 and a 12-month high of $22.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $20.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.28. The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.05 and a beta of 0.89.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The bank reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.05. Simmons First National had a positive return on equity of 6.73% and a negative net margin of 27.83%.The company had revenue of $249.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $238.68 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.39 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Simmons First National Corporation will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Simmons First National Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.215 per share. This is a boost from Simmons First National's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Simmons First National's dividend payout ratio is presently -31.05%.

Simmons First National declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $175.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the bank to buy up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Simmons First National Company Profile

Simmons First National Corporation NASDAQ: SFNC is a bank holding company headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Through its primary operating subsidiary, Simmons Bank, the company maintains a network of more than 200 branches across Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma and North Carolina. Simmons First National offers a full suite of financial services to individuals, small businesses and commercial clients, emphasizing relationship-driven community banking.

The company's core business activities span deposit-taking, lending and payment services.

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