BancFirst Co. Short Interest Sees Notable Decrease

BancFirst Co. (NASDAQ:BANF - Get Free Report) experienced a notable decline in short interest throughout November. As of November 15th, the total short interest amounted to 495,100 shares, marking a decrease of 12.2% from the previous total of 563,800 shares reported on October 31st. This means that around 2.4% of the company's shares are currently sold short. With an average trading volume of 120,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio stands at 4.1 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William Scott Martin executed a sale of 24,607 shares of the company's stock on November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.70, totaling approximately $3,068,492.90. Post-sale, Martin retains ownership of 224,499 shares, valued at around $27,995,025.30, reflecting a 9.88% reduction in his holdings. This transaction has been disclosed as a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, accessible on their website. In a separate transaction on September 3rd, Director David E. Rainbolt sold 1,414 shares at an average price of $105.58, amounting to a total of $149,290.12. After this sale, Rainbolt now owns 223,402 shares valued at $23,586,783.16, indicating a 0.63% decrease in his stock ownership. In total, insiders have sold 160,468 shares worth $18,656,436 over the past 90 days. Insiders hold 33.89% of the stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

In recent activity, various institutional investors and hedge funds have made adjustments to their holdings in BancFirst. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in BancFirst during the third quarter, amounting to about $38,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake by 33.9% in the same period, owning 391 shares valued at $41,000 after an additional purchase of 99 shares. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings by 64.8% in the second quarter, now owning 834 shares valued at $73,000 following the acquisition of 328 additional shares. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in BancFirst worth $77,000 in the second quarter, while nVerses Capital LLC established a new position valued at $105,000 in the third quarter. Overall, institutional investors control 51.72% of the company’s shares.

BancFirst Price Performance

As of Friday, shares of NASDAQ BANF opened at $126.28. The stock boasts a 50-day moving average of $113.38 and a 200-day moving average of $101.78. Additionally, the company has a current ratio and quick ratio both standing at 0.98, with a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. BancFirst's stock has seen a twelve-month low of $81.21 and a high of $132.29. The company has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, with a P/E ratio of 20.30 and a beta of 1.02.

On October 17th, BancFirst released its quarterly earnings data, reporting earnings per share (EPS) of $1.75 for the quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.18. The revenue for the quarter stood at $163.67 million, exceeding the anticipated $156.70 million. The bank recorded a return on equity of 13.92% alongside a net margin of 23.52%. Research analysts predict that BancFirst will post approximately 6.37 earnings per share over the current fiscal year.

BancFirst Dividend Announcement

The company recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be distributed on January 15th. Record holders on December 31st will receive a dividend of $0.46 per share, with an ex-dividend date also set for December 31st. This translates to an annualized dividend of $1.84, yielding 1.46%, and reflects a dividend payout ratio of 29.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Review

Recent analyst reports have been issued for BancFirst. DA Davidson has raised their target price for BancFirst shares from $104.00 to $110.00, assigning a "neutral" rating on October 21st. Meanwhile, StockNews.com has upgraded the rating for BancFirst from "sell" to "hold" on November 7th.

BancFirst Company Overview

BancFirst Corporation serves as the bank holding company for BancFirst, which provides a wide array of commercial banking services geared towards retail clients and small to medium-sized businesses. The company operates through several segments, including BancFirst Metropolitan Banks, BancFirst Community Banks, Pegasus, Worthington, and other financial services.

Conclusion

With all these developments, BancFirst continues to engage both investors and analysts. Stakeholders are keenly monitoring the performance and strategic moves of the company as it strives to maintain its market position.

BancFirst, Investment, Dividends