71,300 Shares in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. $ZION Acquired by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems acquired 71,300 shares of Zions Bancorporation worth approximately $4.93 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 76.84% of the bank’s stock.
• Analysts remain cautious, with an average “Hold” rating and a $71.29 price target; five analysts recommend buying, 12 advise holding, and three recommend selling.
• Zions reported quarterly EPS of $1.74, exceeding expectations, while revenue rose 35.7% year over year. The bank increased its quarterly dividend to $0.48 and authorized a $75 million share-repurchase program, despite insiders selling 88,787 shares over the last quarter.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 71,300 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $4,933,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ZION. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 528.8% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 415 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 76.84% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on ZION. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Evercore cut shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and set a $68.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in a report on Friday, July 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $71.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zions Bancorporation, N.A.

In other news, EVP Scott Law sold 4,608 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.42, for a total transaction of $333,711.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 32,890 shares in the company, valued at $2,381,893.80. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Scott Mclean sold 33,285 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.63, for a total value of $2,350,919.55. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 73,043 shares in the company, valued at $5,159,027.09. The trade was a 31.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 88,787 shares of company stock valued at $6,283,858. Company insiders own 1.43% of the company's stock.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Trading Down 1.4%

ZION opened at $68.37 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $69.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.13. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. has a 1-year low of $46.19 and a 1-year high of $73.34. The company has a market cap of $9.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The bank reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.17. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. had a net margin of 23.92% and a return on equity of 13.72%. The company had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $877.44 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. The business's revenue was up 35.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Zions Bancorporation, N.A. will post 6.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Zions Bancorporation, N.A.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. Zions Bancorporation, N.A.'s payout ratio is 24.46%.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 30th that allows the company to repurchase $75.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 0.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Company Profile

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. is a bank holding company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, offering a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Zions Bank, the company provides commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management solutions designed to serve the needs of small businesses, middle‐market firms and high‐net‐worth clients. Its service portfolio includes deposit accounts, cash‐management tools, lending products, mortgage origination, treasury services and investment advisory services.

The company's commercial banking segment delivers custom credit and treasury management services, including working capital lines of credit, equipment financing and international trade finance.

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