Hsbc Holdings PLC Reduces Position in Bank OZK $OZK

Hsbc Holdings PLC decreased its stake in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) by 57.8% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 38,614 shares of the company’s stock after selling 52,984 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Bank OZK were worth $1,774,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in OZK. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 34.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 7,437,646 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,171,000 after buying an additional 1,924,387 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bank OZK in the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,809,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Bank OZK by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,556,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,712,000 after buying an additional 546,785 shares during the period. Fairholme Capital Management LLC raised its position in Bank OZK by 45.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fairholme Capital Management LLC now owns 916,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,142,000 after buying an additional 285,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd purchased a new position in Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $13,014,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.18% of the company’s stock.

Bank OZK Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:OZK opened at $50.33 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Bank OZK has a 12-month low of $42.37 and a 12-month high of $53.66. The business has a 50 day moving average of $50.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.29. The company has a market capitalization of $5.63 billion, a PE ratio of 8.32 and a beta of 0.89.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $430.02 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $436.42 million. Bank OZK had a net margin of 24.95% and a return on equity of 11.87%. The business’s revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.47 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Bank OZK will post 5.94 EPS for the current year.

Bank OZK declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, June 29th that permits the company to repurchase $200.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 20th. Investors of record on Monday, July 13th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 13th. Bank OZK’s payout ratio is currently 31.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

OZK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Bank OZK from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Bank OZK from $53.00 to $52.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Bank OZK from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Bank OZK in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Bank OZK from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bank OZK presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.00.

Bank OZK Company 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.