Squarepoint Ops LLC Has $5.75 Million Position in Bank OZK $OZK

Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) by 18.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 110,354 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,135 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned 0.10% of Bank OZK worth $5,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 4,666.9% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 6,348,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,713,000 after purchasing an additional 6,215,699 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its stake in Bank OZK by 34.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 7,437,646 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,171,000 after buying an additional 1,924,387 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Bank OZK during the fourth quarter worth about $59,809,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Bank OZK in the 2nd quarter valued at about $63,410,000. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in Bank OZK by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,556,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $301,712,000 after buying an additional 546,785 shares during the period. 86.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank OZK Trading Up 0.7%

OZK opened at $49.09 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.11 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company’s 50 day moving average is $50.53 and its 200-day moving average is $48.78. Bank OZK has a 1-year low of $42.37 and a 1-year high of $53.41.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $430.02 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $436.42 million. Bank OZK had a net margin of 24.95% and a return on equity of 11.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.47 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Bank OZK will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 13th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. This is a boost from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 13th. Bank OZK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.74%.

Bank OZK announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, June 29th that permits the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on OZK. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Bank OZK in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Bank OZK from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Citigroup restated a “sell” rating on shares of Bank OZK in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Zacks Research cut Bank OZK from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Bank OZK from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank OZK currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.88.

About Bank OZK

Bank OZK is a regional financial institution headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. The company provides banking services to individuals, businesses and institutions through a network of banking offices concentrated in the Southeastern United States and select markets, including New York and California.

Its products and services include checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial real estate loans, consumer lending, commercial and industrial financing, treasury management and other business banking solutions.