Insider Buying: Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) EVP Purchases 3,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• David Garner, Executive Vice President of Simmons First National, purchased 3,000 shares at $17.66 each, increasing his total holdings to 72,345 shares, reflecting a 4.33% ownership increase.
• The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share, slightly missing analysts' expectations of $0.47, despite achieving a 14.4% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Simmons First National declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2125, translating to an annual yield of 4.8%, with a negative dividend payout ratio of -29.01%.

Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC - Get Free Report) EVP David Garner purchased 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $17.66 per share, for a total transaction of $52,980.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 72,345 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,277,612.70. This represents a 4.33% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Simmons First National stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $17.78. 1,886,176 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 876,172. The company has a market cap of $2.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.07 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Simmons First National Corporation has a twelve month low of $17.20 and a twelve month high of $25.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.31.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $232.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $103.26 million. Simmons First National had a positive return on equity of 5.84% and a negative net margin of 29.70%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Simmons First National Corporation will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simmons First National Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $0.2125 dividend. This represents a $0.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. Simmons First National's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -29.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SFNC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Simmons First National in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Simmons First National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Simmons First National from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Simmons First National has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $22.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Simmons First National

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 3,737,214 shares of the bank's stock valued at $70,858,000 after buying an additional 254,067 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,072,538 shares of the bank's stock valued at $58,261,000 after buying an additional 9,956 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,731,794 shares of the bank's stock valued at $32,835,000 after buying an additional 212,988 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 1,179.6% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 969,027 shares of the bank's stock valued at $19,894,000 after buying an additional 893,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 41.7% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 922,284 shares of the bank's stock valued at $17,487,000 after buying an additional 271,257 shares in the last quarter. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Simmons First National

Simmons First National Corporation operates as the holding company for Simmons Bank that provides banking and other financial products and services to individuals and businesses. The company offers checking, savings, and time deposits; consumer, real estate, and commercial loans; agricultural finance, equipment, and small business administration lending; trust and fiduciary services; credit cards; investment management products; treasury management; insurance products; and securities and investment services.

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