3,203,944 Shares in BancFirst Corporation $BANF Acquired by BlackRock Inc.

BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of BancFirst Corporation (NASDAQ:BANF) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,203,944 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $356,054,000. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of BancFirst as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of BancFirst by 531.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 221 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of BancFirst during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in BancFirst by 957.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in BancFirst by 108.6% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 559 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in BancFirst in the third quarter valued at $74,000. 51.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded BancFirst from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded BancFirst from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. Zacks Research raised BancFirst from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on BancFirst from $123.00 to $121.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of BancFirst in a report on Friday, June 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, BancFirst presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David E. Rainbolt sold 8,506 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $978,190.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 166,783 shares of company stock valued at $19,366,509. 31.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

BancFirst Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BANF opened at $111.09 on Wednesday. BancFirst Corporation has a 12 month low of $101.48 and a 12 month high of $138.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.99 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $113.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $112.51.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $187.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.53 million. BancFirst had a net margin of 25.61% and a return on equity of 13.44%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that BancFirst Corporation will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BancFirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. BancFirst’s dividend payout ratio is 26.45%.

About BancFirst

BancFirst Corporation is a regional banking holding company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. As the largest state?chartered bank in Oklahoma, BancFirst offers a comprehensive suite of financial services to individuals, businesses and government entities. Its core business activities include commercial and consumer banking, mortgage lending, treasury management, equipment financing and electronic banking solutions.

The bank operates a network of more than 60 branches across Oklahoma, serving urban centers such as Oklahoma City and Tulsa, as well as rural communities throughout the state.