Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Stock Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC)’s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $20.02 and traded as high as $21.87. Simmons First National shares last traded at $21.58, with a volume of 1,160,939 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SFNC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $23.00 to $21.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Simmons First National from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research cut shares of Simmons First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $21.00 price target on shares of Simmons First National in a report on Friday, April 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.00.

Simmons First National Trading Up 0.2%

The stock has a market cap of $3.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.43 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $20.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.02.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. Simmons First National had a negative net margin of 25.44% and a positive return on equity of 7.81%. The firm had revenue of $241.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $243.02 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Simmons First National Corporation will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Simmons First National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.215 per share. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Simmons First National’s payout ratio is -33.59%.

Simmons First National announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 17th that allows the company to buyback $175.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to reacquire up to 5.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Simmons First National

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SFNC. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 156.0% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,518 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 197.5% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,884 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 495 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 42.5% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,175 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Simmons First National by 32.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,658 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Simmons First National Company Profile

Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Through its primary operating subsidiary, Simmons Bank, the company maintains a network of more than 200 branches across Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma and North Carolina. Simmons First National offers a full suite of financial services to individuals, small businesses and commercial clients, emphasizing relationship-driven community banking.

The company’s core business activities span deposit-taking, lending and payment services.