Franklin Resources Inc. Buys Shares of 59,049 Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC)

Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Simmons First National Co. (NASDAQ:SFNC - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 59,049 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,339,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SFNC. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Simmons First National by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,323,934 shares of the bank's stock valued at $128,752,000 after purchasing an additional 413,459 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,992,851 shares of the bank's stock valued at $64,478,000 after acquiring an additional 37,519 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Simmons First National by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,866,142 shares of the bank's stock worth $40,197,000 after purchasing an additional 65,992 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its holdings in Simmons First National by 3.7% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,677,924 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,498,000 after buying an additional 59,495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Simmons First National by 9,443.9% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,395,980 shares of the bank's stock valued at $24,541,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381,353 shares in the last quarter. 27.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Simmons First National Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SFNC traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.35. The stock had a trading volume of 476,690 shares, compared to its average volume of 553,470. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.91 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Simmons First National Co. has a 52 week low of $16.03 and a 52 week high of $25.95. The business's 50-day moving average price is $23.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.36.

Simmons First National (NASDAQ:SFNC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The bank reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $203.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $204.91 million. Simmons First National had a net margin of 8.94% and a return on equity of 5.15%. Simmons First National's quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.39 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Simmons First National Co. will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Simmons First National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Simmons First National's dividend payout ratio is currently 82.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on SFNC. Stephens raised shares of Simmons First National from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Simmons First National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $23.00.

Insider Activity at Simmons First National

In related news, CAO David W. Garner sold 5,090 shares of Simmons First National stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.25, for a total value of $128,522.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 64,966 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,640,391.50. This trade represents a 7.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman George Makris, Jr. sold 25,440 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.21, for a total value of $641,342.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 608,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,336,427.87. The trade was a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 45,800 shares of company stock worth $1,136,650. 1.91% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.