Empowered Funds LLC Grows Position in Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)

Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC) by 5.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 339,142 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,265 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.27% of Simmons First National worth $7,305,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SFNC. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 3,808.6% in the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 95,839 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,865,000 after buying an additional 93,387 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Simmons First National by 17.1% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 173,229 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,371,000 after purchasing an additional 25,316 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Simmons First National during the first quarter worth $1,254,000. Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Simmons First National by 113,111.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 82,644 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,453,000 after purchasing an additional 82,571 shares during the period. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in Simmons First National in the 2nd quarter worth about $479,000. Institutional investors own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Shares of Simmons First National stock opened at $24.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.01 and a beta of 0.86. Simmons First National Co. has a twelve month low of $15.72 and a twelve month high of $25.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $22.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.04.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The bank reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.04. Simmons First National had a return on equity of 5.15% and a net margin of 8.94%. The business had revenue of $203.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.91 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Simmons First National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Simmons First National’s payout ratio is 82.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Simmons First National from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Stephens upgraded Simmons First National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO David W. Garner sold 3,600 shares of Simmons First National stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.21, for a total value of $76,356.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 64,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,377,928.86. The trade was a 5.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman George Makris, Jr. sold 25,440 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.21, for a total value of $641,342.40. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 608,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,336,427.87. This trade represents a 4.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,130 shares of company stock worth $846,221 over the last 90 days. 1.91% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Simmons First National 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.