Verition Fund Management LLC Acquires 39,672 Shares of BancFirst Corporation $BANF

Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its holdings in BancFirst Corporation (NASDAQ:BANF) by 30.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 168,591 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 39,672 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in BancFirst were worth $17,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BANF. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of BancFirst by 531.4% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 221 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in BancFirst by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 295 shares of the bank’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in BancFirst during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in BancFirst during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in BancFirst by 55.0% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 341 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. 51.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BancFirst news, Director David E. Rainbolt sold 24,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.55, for a total transaction of $2,844,147.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 182,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,030,562.20. This represents a 11.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last three months, insiders sold 58,217 shares of company stock worth $6,719,223. Corporate insiders own 31.67% of the company’s stock.

BancFirst Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BANF opened at $113.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 0.59. BancFirst Corporation has a 1-year low of $101.48 and a 1-year high of $138.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $111.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.35.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $179.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $177.19 million. BancFirst had a return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 25.50%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. Equities analysts predict that BancFirst Corporation will post 7.39 earnings per share for the current year.

BancFirst Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. BancFirst’s dividend payout ratio is 26.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BANF has been the subject of several recent research reports. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of BancFirst in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings cut BancFirst from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.00.

BancFirst Profile

BancFirst Corporation is a regional banking holding company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. As the largest state?chartered bank in Oklahoma, BancFirst offers a comprehensive suite of financial services to individuals, businesses and government entities. Its core business activities include commercial and consumer banking, mortgage lending, treasury management, equipment financing and electronic banking solutions.

The bank operates a network of more than 60 branches across Oklahoma, serving urban centers such as Oklahoma City and Tulsa, as well as rural communities throughout the state.