BancFirst Co. (NASDAQ:BANF) Short Interest Up 30.0% in December

BancFirst Co. (NASDAQ:BANF - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 596,900 shares, a growth of 30.0% from the November 30th total of 459,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 95,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.3 days. Approximately 2.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

BancFirst Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ:BANF traded down $1.32 on Friday, reaching $119.89. 60,795 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 86,068. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. BancFirst has a 1-year low of $81.21 and a 1-year high of $132.29. The company's 50 day moving average is $120.63 and its 200-day moving average is $106.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27 and a beta of 1.05.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $163.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $156.70 million. BancFirst had a net margin of 23.52% and a return on equity of 13.92%. Equities research analysts anticipate that BancFirst will post 6.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BancFirst Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. BancFirst's dividend payout ratio is 29.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BANF shares. StockNews.com raised BancFirst from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of BancFirst from $104.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on BancFirst from $117.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Activity at BancFirst

In related news, EVP Dennis L. Brand sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.50, for a total transaction of $506,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 33,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,174,500. This trade represents a 10.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Leslie Jeannine Rainbolt sold 2,152 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.47, for a total value of $237,731.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,942,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $546,003,498.50. The trade was a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 129,150 shares of company stock valued at $15,442,825 over the last three months. 33.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BancFirst

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BancFirst Trust & Investment Management grew its holdings in BancFirst by 50.8% in the third quarter. BancFirst Trust & Investment Management now owns 1,702,082 shares of the bank's stock worth $177,936,000 after purchasing an additional 573,224 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of BancFirst by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,002,160 shares of the bank's stock valued at $87,888,000 after buying an additional 16,664 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in BancFirst by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 872,101 shares of the bank's stock valued at $92,187,000 after buying an additional 96,483 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in BancFirst by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 482,785 shares of the bank's stock worth $50,823,000 after buying an additional 58,016 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in BancFirst by 16.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 192,320 shares of the bank's stock worth $20,242,000 after acquiring an additional 26,707 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.72% of the company's stock.

About BancFirst

BancFirst Corporation operates as the bank holding company for BancFirst that provides a range of commercial banking services to retail customers, and small to medium-sized businesses. The company operates through BancFirst Metropolitan Banks, BancFirst Community Banks, Pegasus, Worthington, and Other Financial Services segments.