Wealthfront Advisers LLC Buys Shares of 26,311 Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 26,311 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $584,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in Simmons First National in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 168.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,144 shares of the bank’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 29.0% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,648 shares of the bank’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,045 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 5.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,778 shares of the bank’s stock worth $168,000 after purchasing an additional 403 shares during the period. Finally, LMR Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Simmons First National during the third quarter worth $205,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.58% of the company’s stock.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFNC opened at $20.39 on Monday. Simmons First National Co. has a twelve month low of $16.03 and a twelve month high of $25.95. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.49. The company has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.03. Simmons First National had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 5.10%. The business had revenue of $208.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. Simmons First National’s quarterly revenue was up 17.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.66 EPS for the current year.

Simmons First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.2125 per share. This represents a $0.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Simmons First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Simmons First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Stephens cut their price target on shares of Simmons First National from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

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.