Park National Corporation (PRK) Stock Price & How to Invest

Park National Corporation (NYSE American: PRK) is a financial holding company headquartered in Newark, Ohio, with roughly $13 billion in assets as of early 2026. It operates through its wholly owned subsidiary, The Park National Bank, offering commercial banking, consumer banking, and wealth management (trust and investment) services primarily across Ohio and neighboring Midwest markets. On February 1, 2026, Park completed an all-stock acquisition of First Citizens Bancshares, a Tennessee bank with about $2.6 billion in assets, expanding its geographic footprint and loan book.

The investment picture is that of a high-quality, slow-and-steady regional bank. Park has historically posted top-quartile profitability (adjusted return on average assets near 1.8% and adjusted return on average tangible common equity in the mid-teens) with net charge-offs well below peer levels, and it carries a strong capital base with a CET1 ratio around 13.5%. The stock is valued and owned largely for its stability and its long history of paying and growing dividends, so its fortunes track net interest margins, loan growth, credit costs, and the pace of integrating the First Citizens deal more than any single catalyst.

The second quarter of 2026 was the first full quarter to show the larger bank clearly. Net income rose to about $58.8 million from about $41.7 million in the first quarter, revenue reached about $178.4 million, and adjusted EPS of about $3.40 beat the roughly $2.96 consensus, the fourth straight quarter ahead of estimates. Trailing twelve-month revenue is now about $609 million, up about 26 percent year over year in the latest quarter, and trailing net income about $190 million. The stock closed at about $180.39 on October 16, 2026, up about 16.9 percent year to date and 19.4 percent over twelve months, though below its 52-week high of $215. Third-quarter results are scheduled for October 26, 2026, with consensus near $3.31 of EPS on about $177 million of revenue.

As a spread lender, Park is exposed to interest-rate swings that can compress net interest margins if deposit costs rise faster than loan yields. Its concentration in Ohio and now Tennessee makes it sensitive to regional economic conditions, commercial real estate exposure, and local credit cycles. Integration risk from the First Citizens deal is real, as merger costs and any operational missteps can pressure near-term earnings. Broader banking-sector stress, deposit competition, and regulatory or capital-requirement changes are additional headwinds. Finally, as a slower-growth community bank, the stock offers limited upside surprise relative to faster-growing financials. After a roughly 17% gain in 2026, the stock trades near 16 times trailing earnings, and analysts expect EPS growth to slow to about 2% in 2027 once the merger is fully in the base, so the valuation leaves less room for a credit or margin disappointment.

4 analysts publish price targets on PRK, averaging $203.50 against a $178.65 price as of October 2026, or +13.9%. The published targets run from $190.00 to $217.00, a narrow spread, and the ratings split 0 buy, 5 hold, 0 sell. Over the last six months there have been 4 raises and 0 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.

Read the full PRK forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.

We give no verdict on Park National Corporation. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.

The case for buying. First Citizens integration and scale. The February 2026 all-stock acquisition of First Citizens Bancshares added roughly $1.58 billion in loans and pushed total loans up about 20% during 2026. The most optimistic published target, $217.00, assumes this works close to its best case.

The case against. As a spread lender, Park is exposed to interest-rate swings that can compress net interest margins if deposit costs rise faster than loan yields. The most pessimistic target, $190.00, is roughly what PRK is worth if this bites instead.

Read the full bull and bear case on PRK, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

No. Park National Corporation (PRK) has not split its stock in the last 10 years. That is a statement about the window we check rather than about the company’s entire history, so an older split is possible. It also matters less than it once did: fractional shares mean a high price per share no longer keeps smaller investors out, which removed most of the practical reason to split.

A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Park National Corporation's investor relations page or your broker.

• Revenue (TTM): ~$609 million, up ~26% year over year in Q2 2026
• Net income (TTM): ~$190 million; profit margin ~31%
• Latest quarter (Q2 2026): Net income ~$58.8 million; adjusted EPS ~$3.40 vs ~$2.96 estimate
• P/E (trailing / forward): ~16.1x / ~13.6x
• Price to book: ~1.9x
• Market cap: ~$3.3 billion (~$180.39 per share, Oct 16, 2026)
• Dividend yield: ~2.5% (~$4.40 annual), payout ~39%

At about $180 a share Park trades near 16 times trailing and 13.6 times forward earnings and about 1.9 times book, a premium to average regional banks that reflects its consistent profitability and credit quality. Earnings jumped in the second quarter of 2026 as the First Citizens acquisition fed through, after a first quarter dampened by around $15.5 million of merger-related expenses. Analysts expect about $13.00 of EPS for 2026 and $13.30 for 2027.

Other names that sit close to PRK: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.

There are three common ways to get PRK exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it, which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so PRK sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.

Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where PRK fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.

New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.

Park National is a conservatively run regional bank whose appeal rests on consistent profitability, strong credit quality, and a durable dividend rather than rapid growth. A strong second quarter in 2026, with the First Citizens deal now feeding earnings, has lifted the stock about 17% year to date; third-quarter results are due October 26, 2026.

Whether PRK is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is PRK a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the PRK stock forecast.

For income investors, whether PRK pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does PRK pay a dividend? And to weigh PRK against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: PRK vs HBAN and PRK vs FITB.