Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Renasant Corp $RNST

Key Points

• Deprince Race & Zollo increased its Renasant stake by 76.8% in the first quarter, adding 423,963 shares and bringing its total holding to 976,243 shares, worth about $35.3 million.
• Renasant reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.93 versus the $0.84 consensus and revenue of $278.49 million, while analysts currently maintain a Buy rating outlook with a $45.50 average price target.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.24 per share, giving an annualized yield of 2.2%, even as several insiders sold shares in recent transactions.

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its position in Renasant Corp (NYSE:RNST - Free Report) by 76.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 976,243 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 423,963 shares during the quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. owned approximately 1.04% of Renasant worth $35,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Renasant by 128.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 52,238 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,772,000 after purchasing an additional 29,380 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Renasant by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 37,167 shares of the company's stock worth $1,261,000 after buying an additional 1,621 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in Renasant during the 1st quarter worth approximately $67,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Renasant by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 189,105 shares of the company's stock worth $6,416,000 after buying an additional 23,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in Renasant during the 1st quarter worth approximately $390,000. 77.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Renasant news, Vice Chairman C Mitchell Waycaster sold 12,704 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.50, for a total transaction of $501,808.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 183,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,237,782.50. This trade represents a 6.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Albert J. Dale III sold 1,650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.80, for a total transaction of $65,670.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,594,985. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 15,611 shares of company stock worth $618,889 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.07% of the company's stock.

Renasant Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RNST opened at $43.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.89. Renasant Corp has a 12 month low of $33.04 and a 12 month high of $43.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.12 and a beta of 0.97. The company's fifty day moving average price is $40.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.79.

Renasant (NYSE:RNST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $278.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.71 million. Renasant had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 14.47%.During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Renasant Corp will post 3.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Renasant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Renasant's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Renasant's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on RNST shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Renasant from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 8th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Renasant in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Renasant in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their price target on shares of Renasant from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Renasant presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $45.50.

About Renasant

Renasant Corporation operates as a bank holding company for Renasant Bank that provides a range of financial, wealth management, fiduciary, and insurance services to retail and commercial customers. It operates through three segments: Community Banks, Insurance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banks segment offers checking and savings accounts, business and personal loans, asset-based lending, and equipment leasing services, as well as safe deposit and night depository facilities. It also provides commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; equipment financing and leasing; real estate–1-4 family mortgage; real estate–commercial mortgage; real estate–construction loans for the construction of single family residential properties, multi-family properties, and commercial projects; installment loans to individuals; and interim construction loans, as well as automated teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, call center, and treasury management services.

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