Geode Capital Management LLC Acquires 29,024 Shares of Bank OZK $OZK

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,146,728 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,024 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Bank OZK were worth $98,812,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BOKF NA bought a new position in shares of Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Bank OZK during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 100.5% during the 4th quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 766 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in shares of Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 96.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. 86.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

Bank OZK stock opened at $49.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $47.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.24. Bank OZK has a 52-week low of $42.37 and a 52-week high of $53.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.08 and a beta of 0.90.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.46 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $424.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $422.62 million. Bank OZK had a return on equity of 12.32% and a net margin of 25.27%.Bank OZK’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.47 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Bank OZK will post 6.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 13th were issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 13th. Bank OZK’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

OZK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Bank OZK from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings lowered Bank OZK from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group initiated coverage on Bank OZK in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Bank OZK from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Bank OZK from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.89.

Bank OZK 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.