Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) Sets New 52-Week Low on Analyst Downgrade

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $48.00 to $40.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Bank OZK traded as low as $35.71 and last traded at $40.46, with a volume of 3003885 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $37.58.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group started coverage on Bank OZK in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $51.00 price target for the company. Stephens increased their price target on shares of Bank OZK from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Bank OZK from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bank OZK has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.38.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank OZK

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in Bank OZK by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 7,102,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,281,000 after buying an additional 1,149,880 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Bank OZK by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,130,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,909,000 after purchasing an additional 188,575 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,945,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,162,000 after purchasing an additional 686,775 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,811,354 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,190,000 after buying an additional 314,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Bank OZK by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,176,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,942,000 after buying an additional 238,810 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.18% of the company’s stock.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $45.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.05.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $412.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $407.19 million. Bank OZK had a net margin of 25.83% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.57%. This is a positive change from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Bank OZK’s payout ratio is currently 28.01%.

Bank OZK Company Profile

Bank OZK provides various retail and commercial banking services for individuals and businesses in the United States. The company offers deposit services, including non-interest bearing checking, interest bearing transaction, business sweep, savings, money market, individual retirement, and other accounts, as well as time and reciprocal deposits.