Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $18.11, but opened at $17.26. Simmons First National shares last traded at $17.31, with a volume of 117,222 shares traded.

The bank reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.10). Simmons First National had a return on equity of 5.10% and a net margin of 10.46%. The company had revenue of $209.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $209.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 EPS.

Simmons First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.2125 per share. This is an increase from Simmons First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.83%. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio is currently 70.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Stephens dropped their target price on Simmons First National from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simmons First National

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Simmons First National during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $579,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 673,440 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,937,000 after buying an additional 27,115 shares during the period. Carlson Capital L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Simmons First National in the 4th quarter valued at $464,000. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in Simmons First National during the 3rd quarter worth $1,339,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Simmons First National by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,895,477 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,042,000 after acquiring an additional 29,335 shares in the last quarter. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Simmons First National Trading Down 2.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.19.

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.