BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) Reaches New 1-Year High at $111.00

BancFirst Co. (NASDAQ:BANF)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $111.00 and last traded at $109.78, with a volume of 76354 shares. The stock had previously closed at $106.76.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on BANF. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on BancFirst from $84.50 to $95.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com lowered BancFirst from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th.

BancFirst Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $3.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.42 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $102.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.38.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The bank reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.09. BancFirst had a return on equity of 13.89% and a net margin of 23.46%. The firm had revenue of $153.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $149.75 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that BancFirst Co. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

BancFirst Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This is an increase from BancFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. BancFirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Leslie Jeannine Rainbolt sold 10,371 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.02, for a total value of $1,089,162.42. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,944,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $519,292,604.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other BancFirst news, EVP Dennis Jay Hannah sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $319,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $821,541. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Leslie Jeannine Rainbolt sold 10,371 shares of BancFirst stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.02, for a total transaction of $1,089,162.42. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,944,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $519,292,604.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 67,564 shares of company stock worth $7,150,517. 33.89% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BancFirst

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of BancFirst by 557.1% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 506 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its stake in BancFirst by 56.8% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 842 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in BancFirst in the second quarter worth approximately $77,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in BancFirst in the first quarter worth approximately $105,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in BancFirst in the second quarter valued at approximately $114,000. 51.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About BancFirst

BancFirst Corporation operates as the bank holding company for BancFirst that provides a range of commercial banking services to retail customers, and small to medium-sized businesses. The company operates through BancFirst Metropolitan Banks, BancFirst Community Banks, Pegasus, Worthington, and Other Financial Services segments.