BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also commented on BANF. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of BancFirst from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $125.00 target price on shares of BancFirst in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $124.00.

BancFirst Trading Up 1.4%

BANF opened at $116.58 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.73 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. BancFirst has a 12 month low of $101.48 and a 12 month high of $138.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $112.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.09.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The bank reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.16. BancFirst had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 25.50%.The company had revenue of $187.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $178.53 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that BancFirst will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BancFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. BancFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BancFirst news, Director David E. Rainbolt sold 9,001 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.11, for a total transaction of $1,036,105.11. Following the sale, the director owned 166,783 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,198,391.13. The trade was a 5.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 40,040 shares of company stock worth $4,619,565. 31.67% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BancFirst

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of BancFirst by 531.4% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 221 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in BancFirst by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 295 shares of the bank’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in BancFirst during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in BancFirst during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in BancFirst by 957.9% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. 51.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About BancFirst

BancFirst Corporation is a regional banking holding company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. As the largest state‐chartered bank in Oklahoma, BancFirst offers a comprehensive suite of financial services to individuals, businesses and government entities. Its core business activities include commercial and consumer banking, mortgage lending, treasury management, equipment financing and electronic banking solutions.

The bank operates a network of more than 60 branches across Oklahoma, serving urban centers such as Oklahoma City and Tulsa, as well as rural communities throughout the state.