Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Shares Gap Down to $18.81

Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $18.81, but opened at $18.00. Simmons First National shares last traded at $18.35, with a volume of 23,561 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on SFNC shares. StockNews.com lowered Simmons First National from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Simmons First National from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Stephens dropped their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.00.

Simmons First National Stock Down 2.1 %

The business has a 50-day moving average of $18.77 and a 200-day moving average of $17.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 0.87.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32. Simmons First National had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 5.94%. The business had revenue of $195.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $202.35 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.35 EPS for the current year.

Simmons First National Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.16%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Simmons First National

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SFNC. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Simmons First National during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,577,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Simmons First National in the first quarter valued at approximately $227,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 48.6% in the fourth quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 31,547 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $631,000 after purchasing an additional 10,312 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Simmons First National by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 532,415 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,563,000 after buying an additional 2,415 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Simmons First National by 54.3% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 992,678 shares of the bank’s stock worth $19,695,000 after buying an additional 349,534 shares in the last quarter. 27.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.