Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Banner (NASDAQ:BANR - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Thursday morning.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on BANR. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Banner from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded Banner from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $71.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Raymond James reissued 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. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Banner in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Banner currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $70.83.

Banner Price Performance

BANR traded down $0.31 during trading on Thursday, reaching $61.61. 190,438 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 215,898. Banner has a 12-month low of $44.90 and a 12-month high of $78.05. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.63 and a beta of 0.90.

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

Banner Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th were paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 29th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. Banner's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.72%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Banner during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Banner during the first quarter worth $34,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Banner by 167.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Banner by 53.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 754 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas grew its position in Banner by 69.1% during the 1st quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 805 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the period. 87.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Banner

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.