Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Cuts Position in Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 69,655 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 5,711 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned about 0.06% of Simmons First National worth $1,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 0.6% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 214,262 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,634,000 after purchasing an additional 1,187 shares during the period. Jag Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 1.1% in the third quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 121,073 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,053,000 after purchasing an additional 1,330 shares during the period. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,590 shares of the bank’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares during the period. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 70,298 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,408,000 after purchasing an additional 2,550 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 1.0% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 279,886 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,747,000 after purchasing an additional 2,800 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Simmons First National Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of SFNC stock opened at $17.50 on Friday. Simmons First National Co. has a 12-month low of $13.36 and a 12-month high of $20.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $18.75 and its 200 day moving average is $17.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.16 and a beta of 0.87.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.32. Simmons First National had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 5.94%. The company had revenue of $195.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $202.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Simmons First National Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on SFNC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target 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. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Stephens cut their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Simmons First National from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Simmons First National presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

Simmons First National Company 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.