Wall Street Zen Downgrades Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) to Sell

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Simmons First National from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 20th. National Bankshares set a $22.00 price objective on Simmons First National in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Zacks Research lowered Simmons First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Simmons First National in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.33.

Simmons First National Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of SFNC stock traded up $0.46 on Friday, hitting $17.91. The stock had a trading volume of 1,151,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 897,095. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $19.14 and its 200-day moving average is $19.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.11 and a beta of 0.97. Simmons First National has a 52-week low of $17.00 and a 52-week high of $25.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $232.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $103.26 million. Simmons First National had a positive return on equity of 5.84% and a negative net margin of 29.70%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.37 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Simmons First National will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David W. Garner purchased 3,000 shares of Simmons First National stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $17.66 per share, with a total value of $52,980.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 72,345 shares in the company, valued at $1,277,612.70. The trade was a 4.33% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven A. Cosse purchased 8,603 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.44 per share, with a total value of $150,036.32. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 113,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,982,090.88. The trade was a 8.19% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Simmons First National

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 197.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,104 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Simmons First National by 42.5% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,175 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Simmons First National by 32.0% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,658 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Simmons First National by 35.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,426 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 892 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SouthState Corp acquired a new stake in Simmons First National in the 1st quarter valued at about $71,000. Institutional investors own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

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.