Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) (NYSE:HOMB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) (NYSE:HOMB - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the five research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $32.40.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on HOMB shares. StockNews.com raised Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Hovde Group reduced their price objective on Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st.

Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of HOMB stock traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $28.09. 948,123 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,021,350. Home Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.42 and a 1 year high of $32.91. The stock has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $27.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.84.

Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) (NYSE:HOMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.02. Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) had a net margin of 27.39% and a return on equity of 10.31%. The company had revenue of $260.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $255.20 million. Research analysts predict that Home Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This is a boost from Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR)'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR)'s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR)

In other news, CAO Jennifer C. Floyd sold 2,500 shares of Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.45, for a total value of $68,625.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,301 shares in the company, valued at $118,062.45. This trade represents a 36.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HOMB. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) by 65.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 422,952 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,458,000 after acquiring an additional 166,927 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new position in Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) in the 3rd quarter valued at $254,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its stake in Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 6,640 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $188,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 69,914 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,979,000 after purchasing an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new stake in shares of Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR) during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. 67.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Home Bancshares, Inc. (Conway, AR)

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.