Home BancShares, Inc. $HOMB Stake Boosted by Centennial Bank AR

Centennial Bank AR lifted its stake in shares of Home BancShares, Inc. (NYSE:HOMB) by 25.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 139,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,000 shares during the period. Home BancShares comprises approximately 1.2% of Centennial Bank AR’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Centennial Bank AR’s holdings in Home BancShares were worth $3,921,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Home BancShares by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 462,502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,033,000 after purchasing an additional 24,193 shares in the last quarter. Barr E S & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Home BancShares by 0.9% during the third quarter. Barr E S & Co. now owns 2,480,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,905,000 after purchasing an additional 22,074 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Home BancShares during the third quarter worth about $278,000. King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its position in shares of Home BancShares by 2.6% during the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 384,155 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,825,000 after purchasing an additional 9,611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Home BancShares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,409,000. 67.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Home BancShares

In other Home BancShares news, Director John W. Allison II sold 13,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.06, for a total transaction of $405,810.00. Following the sale, the director owned 636,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,133,039.70. This represents a 2.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 6.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Home BancShares in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Home BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 16th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Home BancShares from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on Home BancShares from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 9th. Finally, Hovde Group assumed coverage on shares of Home BancShares in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $34.00 target price on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.71.

Home BancShares Price Performance

Home BancShares stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,518,471 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,642,170. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 0.73. Home BancShares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.50 and a fifty-two week high of $31.70. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $29.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Home BancShares (NYSE:HOMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.01. Home BancShares had a net margin of 32.36% and a return on equity of 11.14%. The company had revenue of $288.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $294.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Home BancShares, Inc. will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Home BancShares Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Home BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.70%.

Home BancShares Profile

Home BancShares, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Conway, Arkansas. Founded in 1998, it provides banking services through its principal subsidiary, Centennial Bank. Centennial Bank serves customers in Arkansas, Florida, Alabama and Texas. Its offerings include personal and business deposit accounts, loans, mortgages, and other commercial and retail banking services. The company serves individuals, businesses and organizations, with products and services tailored to both consumer and commercial banking needs.