Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

SFNC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Stephens decreased their price target on Simmons First National from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. DA Davidson increased their target price on Simmons First National from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Simmons First National from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Simmons First National from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $20.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Simmons First National presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.75.

Simmons First National Stock Performance

Shares of Simmons First National stock opened at $20.02 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of 15.76 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Simmons First National has a 52 week low of $17.20 and a 52 week high of $25.95. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.78.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. Simmons First National had a net margin of 11.19% and a return on equity of 5.23%. The company had revenue of $214.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $217.21 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.33 earnings per share. Simmons First National’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Simmons First National will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Simmons First National

In related news, Director Russell William Teubner purchased 9,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $18.62 per share, for a total transaction of $171,304.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 53,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $990,956.40. The trade was a 20.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven A. Cosse purchased 13,500 shares of Simmons First National stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.50 per share, with a total value of $249,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 104,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,926,220. The trade was a 14.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders bought 100,755 shares of company stock worth $1,865,332. Insiders own 1.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 197.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Simmons First National in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Simmons First National in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Simmons First National by 35.2% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,426 shares of the bank’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 892 shares during the period. Finally, SouthState Corp purchased a new position in Simmons First National during the 1st quarter worth $71,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Simmons First National Company Profile

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.