Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $23.19 and last traded at $23.1020, with a volume of 252560 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of Simmons First National from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings raised Simmons First National from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Simmons First National in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research cut Simmons First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $21.00 price objective 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 issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Simmons First National has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Simmons First National Trading Up 2.8%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $21.57 and a 200-day moving average of $20.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.10 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Simmons First National Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.215 dividend. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -33.59%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simmons First National

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Simmons First National by 27.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 88,632 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,820,000 after acquiring an additional 18,933 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Simmons First National by 271.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 158,856 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,261,000 after buying an additional 116,072 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Simmons First National by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 73,861 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,516,000 after buying an additional 3,221 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Simmons First National by 3,624.6% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 13,036 shares of the bank’s stock worth $268,000 after buying an additional 12,686 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Simmons First National by 1,288.2% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 18,046 shares of the bank’s stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 16,746 shares during the period. 27.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.