50,800 Shares in Home BancShares, Inc. (NYSE:HOMB) Acquired by Vestcor Inc

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc has acquired a stake in Home BancShares, Inc. worth approximately $1.44 million during the first quarter, purchasing 50,800 shares.
• Home BancShares recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, which will be distributed on September 3rd, representing an annual yield of 2.9%.
• Analysts have given Home BancShares a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $33.20, reflecting a recent shift in ratings and price adjustments by several equity research firms.

Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in shares of Home BancShares, Inc. (NYSE:HOMB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 50,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,436,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Home BancShares by 0.9% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 44,230 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,250,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Home BancShares by 1.8% in the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 26,770 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $757,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in Home BancShares by 1.0% in the first quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 51,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,464,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Home BancShares by 48.2% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,630 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in shares of Home BancShares by 2.7% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 21,657 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $612,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares during the period. 67.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Home BancShares Stock Performance

HOMB traded down $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $27.86. The stock had a trading volume of 233,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,031,208. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.60. Home BancShares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.22 and a 12 month high of $32.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 0.78.

Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.58. Home BancShares had a net margin of 29.58% and a return on equity of 10.60%. The company had revenue of $271.03 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $262.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 EPS. The business's revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Home BancShares, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Home BancShares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Home BancShares's payout ratio is 36.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HOMB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Home BancShares in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Home BancShares from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Home BancShares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Home BancShares from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Home BancShares from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $33.20.

Insider Transactions at Home BancShares

In other news, insider Kevin Hester sold 7,128 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.67, for a total transaction of $204,359.76. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 124,912 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,581,227.04. This represents a 5.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO John Stephen Tipton sold 24,159 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.52, for a total transaction of $664,855.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 53,308 shares in the company, valued at $1,467,036.16. The trade was a 31.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Home BancShares Profile

Home Bancshares, Inc (Conway, AR) operates as the bank holding company for Centennial Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, and related financial services to businesses, real estate developers and investors, individuals, and municipalities. Its deposit products include checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.