Quantbot Technologies LP Raises Holdings in Simmons First National Corporation $SFNC

Quantbot Technologies LP grew its holdings in Simmons First National Corporation (NASDAQ:SFNC) by 71.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 68,595 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 28,523 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP owned approximately 0.05% of Simmons First National worth $1,408,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its position in Simmons First National by 234.7% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 153,661 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,155,000 after buying an additional 107,752 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Simmons First National in the 1st quarter worth $457,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Simmons First National by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 89,439 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,836,000 after buying an additional 3,116 shares during the last quarter. Mustard Seed Financial LLC lifted its position in Simmons First National by 1.9% during the first quarter. Mustard Seed Financial LLC now owns 34,402 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $706,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in Simmons First National by 27.4% during the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 398,497 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,181,000 after purchasing an additional 85,630 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SFNC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Zacks Research raised Simmons First National from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Simmons First National from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on Simmons First National from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.75.

Insider Activity at Simmons First National

In related news, CFO Charles Daniel Hobbs acquired 5,400 shares of Simmons First National stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $18.50 per share, with a total value of $99,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $188,940.50. The trade was a 112.20% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Steenberg Christopher J. Van bought 13,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $18.50 per share, for a total transaction of $249,750.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer owned 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $249,750. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 100,755 shares of company stock valued at $1,865,332 over the last ninety days. 1.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Simmons First National Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of NASDAQ SFNC opened at $20.86 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $19.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Simmons First National Corporation has a 1-year low of $17.20 and a 1-year high of $25.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43 and a beta of 0.95.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.04. Simmons First National had a return on equity of 5.23% and a net margin of 11.19%.The company had revenue of $214.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $217.21 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Simmons First National Corporation will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

About Simmons First National

Simmons First National Corporation operates as the holding company for Simmons Bank that provides banking and other financial products and services to individuals and businesses. The company offers checking, savings, and time deposits; consumer, real estate, and commercial loans; agricultural finance, equipment, and small business administration lending; trust and fiduciary services; credit cards; investment management products; treasury management; insurance products; and securities and investment services.