Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.07 EPS

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.07, Briefing.com reports. Bank OZK had a net margin of 30.69% and a return on equity of 15.13%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share.

Bank OZK Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of OZK opened at $41.82 on Thursday. Bank OZK has a 12 month low of $30.72 and a 12 month high of $52.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $43.34 and its 200-day moving average is $43.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.73 billion, a PE ratio of 7.12 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This is a boost from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.73%. Bank OZK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.58%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank OZK by 66.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bank OZK by 94.0% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 776 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Bank OZK by 235.2% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 776 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Bank OZK by 56.6% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 896 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. 86.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

OZK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Bank OZK from $62.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Bank OZK from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Raymond James raised shares of Bank OZK from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 5th. UBS Group cut shares of Bank OZK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Bank OZK from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.14.

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.