California Public Employees Retirement System Increases Stake in Home BancShares, Inc. $HOMB

California Public Employees Retirement System increased its stake in Home BancShares, Inc. (NYSE:HOMB) by 6.9% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 372,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 24,005 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Home BancShares were worth $10,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HOMB. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its position in Home BancShares by 76.9% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home BancShares in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Home BancShares by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc grew its stake in shares of Home BancShares by 76.7% during the 2nd quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 1,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the period. 67.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Home BancShares Price Performance

HOMB opened at $30.98 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Home BancShares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.50 and a 52-week high of $31.24. The company has a 50 day moving average of $28.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.91. The company has a market cap of $6.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.80 and a beta of 0.68.

Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.02. Home BancShares had a net margin of 32.10% and a return on equity of 11.25%. The company had revenue of $295.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $288.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.58 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Home BancShares, Inc. will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Home BancShares Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Home BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Home BancShares’s payout ratio is currently 34.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HOMB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark assumed coverage on Home BancShares in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Stephens lifted their target price on Home BancShares from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings raised Home BancShares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $32.00 price target (up from $29.00) on shares of Home BancShares in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective (up from $33.00) on shares of Home BancShares in a report on Friday, July 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.67.

Home BancShares 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.