New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK)

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 6,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $285,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 2.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 298,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,821,000 after acquiring an additional 5,812 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its stake in Bank OZK by 68.6% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 34,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,499,000 after purchasing an additional 14,189 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Bank OZK in the 3rd quarter worth $199,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in shares of Bank OZK by 50.5% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 7,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,000 after buying an additional 2,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank OZK in the third quarter valued at $392,000. 86.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bank OZK Price Performance

Shares of OZK opened at $43.38 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07 and a beta of 1.23. The business’s 50-day moving average is $47.92 and its 200-day moving average is $46.18. Bank OZK has a fifty-two week low of $37.43 and a fifty-two week high of $53.64.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last released its 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. Bank OZK had a net margin of 25.83% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The company had revenue of $412.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $407.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Bank OZK will post 6.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This is a boost from Bank OZK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.96%. Bank OZK’s payout ratio is presently 27.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.