Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 85,599 Shares of Bank OZK $OZK

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,234,679 shares of the company’s stock after selling 85,599 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.88% of Bank OZK worth $572,744,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Bank OZK by 58.2% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Bank OZK during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in shares of Bank OZK by 147.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 82.2% in the third quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 665 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. 86.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bank OZK Price Performance

Bank OZK stock opened at $48.63 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.88 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50-day moving average of $48.09 and a 200-day moving average of $48.44. Bank OZK has a 1 year low of $35.71 and a 1 year high of $53.66.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.03). Bank OZK had a net margin of 25.50% and a return on equity of 12.65%. The firm had revenue of $436.29 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $434.68 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Bank OZK will post 6.02 EPS for the current year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 13th were given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 13th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is an increase from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Bank OZK’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens decreased their target price on Bank OZK from $64.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Bank OZK from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Bank OZK from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank OZK from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $51.00 price target on shares of Bank OZK in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.78.

Bank OZK Company Profile

Bank OZK, formerly known as Bank of the Ozarks, is a regional commercial bank headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Established in 1903, the bank offers a full suite of banking products and services to both individual and corporate clients. Through a combination of organic growth and targeted acquisitions, Bank OZK has built a diversified lending portfolio and a strong deposit franchise.

The bank’s core operations focus on commercial real estate lending, including acquisition, development and construction financing.