First Trust Advisors LP Sells 23,037 Shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its position in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR - Free Report) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,706 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 23,037 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.21% of Banner worth $4,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Banner by 28.1% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,701,653 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $113,619,000 after buying an additional 373,037 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Banner by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,379,521 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $92,111,000 after purchasing an additional 49,457 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Banner by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 738,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $49,300,000 after purchasing an additional 38,454 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Banner by 10,213.3% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 634,579 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,371,000 after purchasing an additional 628,426 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Banner by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 409,885 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $24,413,000 after buying an additional 29,174 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.33% of the company's stock.

Banner Stock Up 1.2 %

BANR stock traded up $0.73 during trading on Friday, reaching $63.13. 170,252 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 213,869. The firm has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.94 and a beta of 0.90. Banner Co. has a twelve month low of $44.59 and a twelve month high of $78.05. The firm's 50 day moving average is $62.39 and its 200 day moving average is $67.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $159.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.72 million. Banner had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 10.03%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.22 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Banner Co. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. Banner's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BANR has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Banner from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Banner from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of Banner in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 target price (down previously from $77.00) on shares of Banner in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.83.

Banner Profile

Banner Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Banner Bank that engages in the provision of commercial banking and financial products and services to individuals, businesses, and public sector entities in the United States. It accepts various deposit instruments, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, regular savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as treasury management services and retirement savings plans.