Freestone Grove Partners LP Makes New $51.12 Million Investment in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION)

Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 942,230 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $51,116,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP owned 0.64% of Zions Bancorporation, National Association at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ZION. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 541 shares of the bank's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 128.1% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 853 shares of the bank's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 479 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 120.8% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 901 shares of the bank's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Finally, Natixis bought a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the 4th quarter worth approximately $102,000. 76.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Trading Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ ZION traded down $0.84 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $45.66. 2,157,131 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,574,061. The stock has a market cap of $6.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a one year low of $39.32 and a one year high of $63.22. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.13.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $795.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $792.49 million. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 15.70%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.96 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 5.39 EPS for the current year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association's payout ratio is currently 33.59%.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Argus upgraded Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $71.00 to $64.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $58.00 to $47.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.76.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.71, for a total value of $557,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 45,847 shares in the company, valued at $2,554,136.37. This represents a 17.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total transaction of $1,280,344.31. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,655,305.11. This represents a 43.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,029 shares of company stock worth $1,855,321 over the last quarter. 2.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Company Profile

Zions Bancorporation, National Association provides various banking products and related services primarily in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. It operates through Zions Bank, California Bank & Trust, Amegy Bank, National Bank of Arizona, Nevada State Bank, Vectra Bank Colorado, and The Commerce Bank of Washington segments.