Robert A. Fehlman Sells 15,270 Shares of Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC) Stock

Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC) CEO Robert A. Fehlman sold 15,270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.02, for a total transaction of $366,785.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 156,357 shares in the company, valued at $3,755,695.14. This represents a 8.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Simmons First National Stock Up 2.6 %

SFNC stock opened at $24.83 on Friday. Simmons First National Co. has a one year low of $15.72 and a one year high of $25.95. The firm has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of 24.34 and a beta of 0.86. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $22.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The bank reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $203.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.91 million. Simmons First National had a return on equity of 5.15% and a net margin of 8.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.33 EPS for the current year.

Simmons First National Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SFNC shares. StockNews.com raised Simmons First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Stephens raised shares of Simmons First National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $28.00 in a report on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $23.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Simmons First National

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SFNC. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Simmons First National by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,992,851 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $64,478,000 after purchasing an additional 37,519 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Simmons First National by 131.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 247,821 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,337,000 after buying an additional 140,738 shares in the last quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 231.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC now owns 137,352 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,959,000 after buying an additional 95,928 shares during the period. iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in Simmons First National during the 3rd quarter worth about $269,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in Simmons First National by 43.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 158,099 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,405,000 after acquiring an additional 47,820 shares during the period. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Simmons First National Company Profile

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.