Park National (NYSE:PRK) Shares Gap Up Following Dividend Announcement

Park National Co. (NYSE:PRK) gapped up prior to trading on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $128.01, but opened at $131.88. Park National shares last traded at $131.27, with a volume of 9,074 shares traded.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a $1.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. Park National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Park National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Park National in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock.

Park National Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $129.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $122.68.

Park National (NYSE:PRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $140.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $119.14 million. Park National had a return on equity of 12.28% and a net margin of 22.03%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Park National Co. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Park National by 1.3% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $818,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in Park National by 0.6% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 35,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,365,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its holdings in Park National by 6.9% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 3,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Park National during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its holdings in Park National by 6.3% during the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 5,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $567,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. 62.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Park National Company Profile

Park National Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Park National Bank that provides commercial banking and trust services in small and medium population areas. The company offers deposits for demand, savings, and time accounts; trust and wealth management services; cash management services; safe deposit operations; electronic funds transfers; Internet and mobile banking solutions with bill pay service; credit cards; and various additional banking-related services.