Simmons First National
NASDAQ: SFNC
$23.18 ▲ +0.17  (+0.74%)
At close: Jul 24, 2026 · 3:59 PM UTC
Financial Ratios
Market Cap3.37 Bn
P/E-9.32
P/S117.94
Div. Yield0.04
Total Debt (Qtr)446.76 Mn
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About

Simmons First National Corporation is a financial holding company that provides banking and other financial products and services through its subsidiaries, primarily Simmons Bank. The company operates in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. As of December 31, 2025, it reported total consolidated assets of $24.54 billion, total consolidated loans of $17.49 billion, total consolidated deposits of $20.18 billion, and equity capital of $3.42 billion. The…

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Sector: Financial Services Industry: Banks - Regional CIK: 0000090498

Investment Thesis

▲ Bull case
  • Simmons First National Corporation possesses a meaningful growth tailwind from its back book repricing opportunity, with over $2.5 billion of loans set to reprice over the next two years at rates below 4%, which will continue to support net interest income and margin expansion despite anticipated rate cuts in May and August 2026, as these loans will roll to higher market rates providing a natural tailwind that offsets headwinds from falling rates, and management explicitly highlighted this as an ongoing benefit that will persist even as the impact of recent rate cuts diminishes, creating a structural advantage in a declining rate environment that many peers lack due to less favorable loan yield compositions.
  • The company is strategically positioned to exceed its net interest margin guidance through disciplined deposit beta management and low-cost deposit growth initiatives, with cumulative deposit beta expected to moderate to the high-50% range by end of 2026 from the current 64%, reflecting a shift away from high-beta brokered deposits (reduced by $1.4 billion post-restructure) toward stickier customer deposits, and management identified organic growth in low-cost deposits as the primary lever for upside to its net interest income guide of 9% to 11%, signaling that success in this area could drive meaningful margin expansion beyond current expectations without relying on loan volume growth.
  • Simmons First National Corporation is benefiting from a sustained improvement in asset quality and credit stability following the resolution of legacy problem credits and the equipment finance portfolio deep dive, with management emphasizing that underlying credit metrics remain in the stable category based on early and predictive indicators, and the successful resolution of these historical issues without material unexpected losses demonstrates effective risk management and removes a potential overhang on earnings, allowing the company to focus capital and attention on growth initiatives rather than credit remediation, which supports confidence in sustainable profitability.
  • The company’s efficiency and scale initiatives are creating self-funding capacity for strategic investments, with operating expenses in 2025 below the 2022 fourth-quarter run rate despite three years of inflation and merit increases, demonstrating disciplined execution that frees up resources for talent acquisition, technology modernization, and business line investments in commercial treasury management and private banking, which are already showing early success and represent high-potential avenues for revenue diversification and margin enhancement beyond traditional interest income streams.
  • Simmons First National Corporation’s dividend policy reflects exceptional financial strength and shareholder commitment, with the 2026 quarterly cash dividend increase of 1% marking the 15th consecutive year of raises and a ten-year compound annual growth rate of 6%, underpinning its status as a Dividend Contender and signaling durable earnings power and conservative capital management that supports long-term total return potential even amid moderate growth forecasts, as the consistency and reliability of dividend growth attract income-focused investors and provide a floor for valuation.
▼ Bear case
  • Simmons First National Corporation’s loan growth outlook for 2026 remains constrained to low to mid-single-digit levels despite strong fourth-quarter production, as management explicitly cautioned against sustaining the recent pace due to timing-specific factors and emphasized continued caution around credit underwriting and pricing profitability, particularly in commercial real estate where irrational competitive dynamics are eroding risk-adjusted returns, suggesting that the recent growth surge may not be repeatable and that structural headwinds in loan pricing could limit upside even if volume improves.
  • The company’s net interest margin is vulnerable to moderate downside from projected rate cuts in May and August 2026, as while the back book repricing provides a tailwind, the liability-sensitive positioning on the short end of the yield curve (days 1-3 months) means immediate benefits from rate cuts will be partially offset by falling loan yields, and management acknowledged that the historical 200 basis point pickup in net interest margin before the recent rate cuts will diminish, creating a scenario where margin stability or modest expansion is the best-case outcome rather than meaningful growth, especially if deposit beta does not decline as expected.
  • Deposit growth remains a critical constraint on overall balance sheet expansion, with management acknowledging that the core customer deposit side is the binding constraint on loan growth, and while efforts to grow low-cost deposits are underway, the company’s noninterest-bearing deposit percentage remains below peer and internal targets, indicating that progress in this area may be slower than anticipated, and any acceleration in loan growth without corresponding deposit growth would require reliance on less desirable funding sources such as promotional CD rates or wholesale borrowing, increasing cost and complexity.
  • Operating expense guidance of 2% to 3% year-over-year growth reflects a balanced view that may understate the difficulty of sustaining efficiency gains, as management admitted that the latter innings of the Better Bank Initiative are significantly harder than the early stages due to exhausted low-hanging fruit, and continued investment in talent, technology, and innovation could pressure the expense ratio if revenue growth from these initiatives lags, particularly in competitive areas like commercial treasury management and private banking where monetization timelines are uncertain.
  • The company’s return metrics, while strong in the quarter (16% ROTCE), face normalization pressures from seasonal factors in Q1 (two fewer days impacting NII by ~$3.5 million) and the lapping of one-time benefits such as BOLI gains, with management indicating that sustainable ROA is likely in the mid-1 teens range, suggesting that the exceptional quarterly profitability may not be fully sustainable and that investors should expect a return to more moderate, though still respectable, levels of return on equity and tangible common equity as the year progresses.

Product and Service Breakdown of Revenue (2025)

Peer Comparison

Companies in the Banks - Regional
S.No. Ticker Company Market CapP/EP/STotal Debt (Qtr)
1 KB KB Financial Group Inc. 42,090.38 Bn0.00 Bn0.01 Mn56.66 Bn
2 SHG Shinhan Financial Group Co Ltd 33,919.15 Bn0.00 Bn0.00 Mn40.46 Bn
3 BCH Bank Of Chile 4,123.52 Bn368.17 Bn1.57 Mn0.00 Bn
4 LYG Lloyds Banking Group plc 360.83 Bn0.00 Bn0.00 Mn42.37 Bn
5 FCAP First Capital Inc 204.17 Bn0.00 Bn0.03 Mn-
6 LARK Landmark Bancorp Inc 187.97 Bn0.00 Bn0.00 Mn0.00 Bn
7 NWG NatWest Group plc 144.82 Bn0.00 Bn0.00 Mn94.66 Bn
8 PNC Pnc Financial Services Group, Inc. 101.80 Bn0.00 Bn0.00 Mn21.42 Bn