Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of BancorpSouth, Inc. (NYSE:BXS) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, July 28th.
According to Zacks, “BancorpSouth’s shares have outperformed the industry over the last six months. The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in second-quarter 2017. Higher revenues and stable expenses were recorded. Given a strong balance sheet position, BancorpSouth has been steadily enhancing shareholders’ value through strategic acquisitions, dividend hikes and share buybacks. Further, its efforts to enhance non-interest income will go a long way in supporting the bottom line. However, despite rise in rates, continued pressure on margin due to lower yields remains a major concern. Nevertheless, BancorpSouth’s expense management initiatives keep us encouraged. Notably, the company has entered into an Agreement and Plan of Reorganization whereby BancorpSouth will be merged with and into its wholly-owned bank subsidiary, BancorpSouth Bank.”
A number of other research firms have also weighed in on BXS. Piper Jaffray Companies reiterated a hold rating and issued a $31.00 target price on shares of BancorpSouth in a research note on Friday, July 21st. Jefferies Group LLC reiterated a hold rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of BancorpSouth in a research note on Friday, May 5th. Stephens restated a buy rating on shares of BancorpSouth in a research note on Wednesday, April 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a hold rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of BancorpSouth in a research note on Monday, June 5th. Finally, BidaskClub upgraded BancorpSouth from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, June 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. The company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $31.67.
Shares of BancorpSouth (NYSE:BXS) traded down 0.52% on Friday, hitting $28.80. 84,821 shares of the company traded hands. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.73 and a beta of 1.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $30.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.23. BancorpSouth has a 1-year low of $22.23 and a 1-year high of $32.40.
BancorpSouth (NYSE:BXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 19th. The bank reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.02. BancorpSouth had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 19.46%. The business had revenue of $185.61 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $187.78 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that BancorpSouth will post $1.66 earnings per share for the current year.
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The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 14th. This is an increase from BancorpSouth’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. BancorpSouth’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.86%.
A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BXS. Piedmont Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of BancorpSouth by 20.5% in the second quarter. Piedmont Investment Advisors LLC now owns 24,882 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $759,000 after buying an additional 4,236 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in BancorpSouth during the second quarter worth approximately $386,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in BancorpSouth during the second quarter worth approximately $238,000. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd purchased a new stake in BancorpSouth during the second quarter worth approximately $6,063,000. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in BancorpSouth by 6.8% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,886,258 shares of the bank’s stock worth $149,028,000 after buying an additional 310,447 shares during the period. 66.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
About BancorpSouth
BancorpSouth, Inc is a financial holding company. The Company, through its principal bank subsidiary, BancorpSouth Bank (the Bank), conducts commercial banking and financial services operations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas and Illinois. The Company’s segments include Community Banking, Insurance Agencies, and General Corporate and Other.
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