Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Given New $21.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $23.00 to $21.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the bank’s stock.

SFNC has been the subject of a number of other reports. National Bank Financial set a $21.00 price objective on Simmons First National in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Simmons First National from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Simmons First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Simmons First National currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.14.

Simmons First National Stock Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:SFNC opened at $19.45 on Tuesday. Simmons First National has a one year low of $17.00 and a one year high of $22.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a PE ratio of -7.02 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.28.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The bank reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $249.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $238.68 million. Simmons First National had a negative net margin of 27.83% and a positive return on equity of 6.73%. The company’s revenue was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.39 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Simmons First National will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Simmons First National Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.215 per share. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Simmons First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -31.05%.

Simmons First National announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $175.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the bank to buy up to 5.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SFNC. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 197.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,884 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 42.5% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,175 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 649 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Simmons First National by 32.0% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,658 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP bought a new position in shares of Simmons First National during the 4th quarter worth about $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

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.