Home BancShares, Inc. (NYSE:HOMB) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Home BancShares, Inc. (NYSE:HOMB) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $33.00.

HOMB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Home BancShares from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $31.00 price objective (up from $30.00) on shares of Home BancShares in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Benchmark started coverage on shares of Home BancShares in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Home BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Home BancShares from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John Tipton sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.59, for a total value of $379,080.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 76,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,410,569.72. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 6.39% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home BancShares

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in Home BancShares by 76.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Home BancShares by 110.6% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 697 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in Home BancShares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home BancShares in the second quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Home BancShares by 153.3% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,124 shares in the last quarter. 67.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Home BancShares Stock Performance

NYSE HOMB opened at $30.20 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $6.04 billion, a PE ratio of 12.48 and a beta of 0.67. Home BancShares has a twelve month low of $25.50 and a twelve month high of $31.70.

Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.02. Home BancShares had a net margin of 32.10% and a return on equity of 11.12%. The firm had revenue of $295.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $288.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.58 EPS. Home BancShares’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Home BancShares will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Home BancShares Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th were paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 12th. This is a boost from Home BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Home BancShares’s payout ratio is presently 38.02%.

Home BancShares Company Profile

Home BancShares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Conway, Arkansas. Its principal subsidiary, Centennial Bank, provides community banking services to individuals, businesses and institutional customers.

Centennial Bank offers a range of deposit products, including checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, as well as commercial, residential mortgage, real estate, agricultural and consumer loans. The bank also provides treasury management, online and mobile banking, cash management and other financial services designed for business and retail customers.

Home BancShares was founded in 1998 and has grown through a combination of organic expansion and acquisitions.