DA Davidson Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Stock

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at DA Davidson from $21.00 to $23.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the bank’s stock. DA Davidson’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 14.54% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on SFNC. National Bankshares set a $21.00 target price on Simmons First National in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Simmons First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Simmons First National from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $23.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Simmons First National from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.43.

Simmons First National Price Performance

NASDAQ:SFNC opened at $20.08 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Simmons First National has a 12 month low of $17.00 and a 12 month high of $23.44. The firm has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.25 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.25.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Simmons First National

In other news, Director Steven A. Cosse acquired 8,603 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $17.44 per share, with a total value of $150,036.32. Following the transaction, the director owned 113,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,982,090.88. This trade represents a 8.19% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Simmons First National

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its position in shares of Simmons First National by 705.8% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 122,145 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,316,000 after acquiring an additional 106,986 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Simmons First National by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 74,955 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,420,000 after acquiring an additional 5,298 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in Simmons First National during the second quarter worth approximately $518,000. Savant Capital LLC acquired a new position in Simmons First National in the second quarter valued at approximately $279,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in Simmons First National by 12.4% in the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 136,519 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,588,000 after purchasing an additional 15,053 shares in the last quarter. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Simmons First National

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.