Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $22.3333.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on SFNC shares. Piper Sandler raised shares of Simmons First National from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. National Bankshares set a $22.00 target price on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Simmons First National in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Simmons First National from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Simmons First National from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 20th.

Simmons First National Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of SFNC stock opened at $18.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of -6.36 and a beta of 0.97. Simmons First National has a 52-week low of $17.00 and a 52-week high of $25.12.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.01). Simmons First National had a positive return on equity of 5.84% and a negative net margin of 29.70%.The business had revenue of $232.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $103.26 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Simmons First National will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simmons First National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.2125 per share. This represents a $0.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -29.01%.

Insider Activity at Simmons First National

In other Simmons First National news, EVP David W. Garner purchased 3,000 shares of Simmons First National stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.66 per share, for a total transaction of $52,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 72,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,277,612.70. This trade represents a 4.33% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven A. Cosse purchased 8,603 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $17.44 per share, for a total transaction of $150,036.32. Following the purchase, the director owned 113,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,982,090.88. This represents a 8.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Simmons First National

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 197.5% in the 2nd 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 last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in Simmons First National by 42.5% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,175 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Simmons First National by 32.0% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,658 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 644 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Simmons First National by 35.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,426 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 892 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SouthState Corp bought a new stake in shares of Simmons First National in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $71,000. 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.