Wall Street Zen Upgrades Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) to “Hold”

Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

HOMB has been the topic of a number of other reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Home BancShares from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Home BancShares in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective (up from $34.00) on shares of Home BancShares in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price objective on shares of Home BancShares from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $31.00 target price on shares of Home BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.40.

Home BancShares Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of HOMB stock opened at $27.01 on Friday. Home BancShares has a fifty-two week low of $24.22 and a fifty-two week high of $30.83. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $28.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $5.31 billion, a PE ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.78.

Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60. Home BancShares had a return on equity of 11.16% and a net margin of 32.18%.The company had revenue of $269.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $272.48 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. Home BancShares’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Home BancShares will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Donna Townsell sold 5,563 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.38, for a total value of $157,877.94. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 218,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,199,894.80. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John W. Allison II sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.19, for a total value of $140,950.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 651,995 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,379,739.05. This trade represents a 0.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Home BancShares by 164.8% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home BancShares during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in Home BancShares by 110.6% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc raised its stake in Home BancShares by 76.7% during the second quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 1,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Home BancShares in the third quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors own 67.31% of the company’s stock.

Home BancShares Company Profile

Home BancShares, Inc is a bank holding company based in Conway, Arkansas, operating through its primary subsidiary, Home Bank, National Association. Founded in March 1999, the company provides a comprehensive suite of banking services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses, and public entities. These services encompass deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage origination and servicing, treasury management, and wealth management solutions.

The company’s core products include checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, and money market accounts, as well as a variety of loan offerings such as commercial real estate financing, equipment loans, agricultural lending, and residential mortgages.