Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Earns Hold (C) Rating from Weiss Ratings

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC)‘s stock had its “hold (c)” rating reissued by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a report released on Saturday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on SFNC. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Simmons First National from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Simmons First National from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Simmons First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Simmons First National has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.50.

Simmons First National Stock Performance

Shares of SFNC opened at $17.87 on Friday. Simmons First National has a 12-month low of $17.20 and a 12-month high of $25.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market cap of $2.59 billion, a PE ratio of -6.10 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $19.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.32.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last announced its earnings results 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 negative net margin of 29.70% and a positive return on equity of 5.84%. The company had revenue of $232.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $103.26 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.37 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Simmons First National will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David W. Garner acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was purchased 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 $1,277,612.70. This trade represents a 4.33% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Russell William Teubner bought 9,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.62 per share, for a total transaction of $171,304.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 53,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $990,956.40. The trade was a 20.90% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 14,200 shares of company stock worth $261,544 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.91% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simmons First National

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 2.1% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 85,726 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,643,000 after purchasing an additional 1,765 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Simmons First National by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 32,575 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $624,000 after purchasing an additional 3,900 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in Simmons First National by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 78,130 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 3,175 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its holdings in Simmons First National by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 30,400 shares of the bank’s stock worth $588,000 after buying an additional 3,400 shares during the period. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in Simmons First National by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 66,500 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,275,000 after buying an additional 7,700 shares during the period. 27.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.