Citigroup Inc. Has $6.71 Million Position in Banner Corporation $BANR

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Banner Corporation by 43% in the first quarter, owning approximately 0.30% of the company, valued at about $6.71 million.
• Banner Corporation recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.0%.
• Despite a solid earnings report, Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings for Banner, with one downgrade to "sell" and a consensus rating of "hold."

Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR - Free Report) by 43.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 105,172 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 31,631 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.30% of Banner worth $6,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Banner in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas boosted its stake in Banner by 69.1% in the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 805 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Banner by 816.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Banner by 13.1% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Banner Stock Up 4.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:BANR traded up $3.0750 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $66.9050. 23,771 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 219,956. Banner Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $53.78 and a fifty-two week high of $78.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of 12.76 and a beta of 0.93.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.03. Banner had a net margin of 21.15% and a return on equity of 10.06%. The business had revenue of $162.98 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.96 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Banner Corporation will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. Banner's payout ratio is presently 36.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on BANR shares. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Banner from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Banner from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $70.17.

Banner Company 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.