KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes $1.27 Million Position in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 28,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,265,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in Bank OZK by 1.9% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 13,432 shares of the company's stock worth $578,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Bank OZK by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,509 shares of the company's stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Bank OZK by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 31,253 shares of the company's stock worth $1,392,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Bank OZK by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 15,733 shares of the company's stock valued at $701,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bank OZK by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 46,784 shares of the company's stock worth $2,083,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on OZK shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Bank OZK from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Stephens raised their price objective on Bank OZK from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group initiated coverage on Bank OZK in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $51.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Bank OZK from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $50.38.

Bank OZK Price Performance

Shares of Bank OZK stock traded down $4.85 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $38.90. The stock had a trading volume of 2,707,955 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,283,304. The stock's 50 day moving average is $47.53 and its 200 day moving average is $46.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Bank OZK has a twelve month low of $37.43 and a twelve month high of $53.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a PE ratio of 6.34 and a beta of 1.23.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $412.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $407.19 million. Bank OZK had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 25.83%. Bank OZK's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.50 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Bank OZK will post 6.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders 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 is a boost from Bank OZK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.42%. Bank OZK's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.36%.

About Bank OZK

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.