Clearbridge Investments LLC Sells 26,055 Shares of Bank OZK $OZK

Clearbridge Investments LLC lessened its position in shares of Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 295,257 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,055 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Bank OZK were worth $13,588,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Bank OZK during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. BOKF NA bought a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its position in shares of Bank OZK by 100.5% during the 4th quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in shares of Bank OZK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors own 86.18% of the company’s stock.

Bank OZK Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ OZK opened at $51.04 on Thursday. Bank OZK has a fifty-two week low of $42.37 and a fifty-two week high of $53.66. The stock has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.31 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.42.

Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.46 by ($0.02). Bank OZK had a net margin of 25.27% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The business had revenue of $424.32 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $422.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.47 EPS. Bank OZK’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bank OZK will post 6.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank OZK Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th were given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 13th. Bank OZK’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on OZK shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Bank OZK from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. UBS Group began coverage on Bank OZK in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut Bank OZK from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Bank OZK from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Bank OZK from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.89.

About Bank OZK

Bank OZK, formerly known as Bank of the Ozarks, is a regional commercial bank headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Established in 1903, the bank offers a full suite of banking products and services to both individual and corporate clients. Through a combination of organic growth and targeted acquisitions, Bank OZK has built a diversified lending portfolio and a strong deposit franchise.

The bank’s core operations focus on commercial real estate lending, including acquisition, development and construction financing.