Jennison Associates LLC Lowers Stock Position in Renasant Corp $RNST

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC trimmed its Renasant stake by 21.8%, selling 355,587 shares and holding 1,276,458 shares worth about $44.96 million, while institutional investors own roughly 77.3% of the stock.
• Renasant beat Q1 expectations with EPS of $0.93 (vs. $0.84) and revenue of $278.49M, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.24 (annualized $0.96, ~2.4% yield).
• Wall Street sentiment is positive—a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Buy" with an average price target of $44.67 and recent upgrades, including a Hovde price target increase to $46.00.

Jennison Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of Renasant Corp (NYSE:RNST - Free Report) by 21.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,276,458 shares of the company's stock after selling 355,587 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned 1.34% of Renasant worth $44,957,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Renasant during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Renasant by 68.7% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 857 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Renasant by 42.8% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,152 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new position in shares of Renasant during the first quarter worth approximately $67,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in shares of Renasant during the third quarter worth approximately $85,000. 77.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RNST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Renasant in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Renasant from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Renasant from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Finally, Hovde Group lifted their price objective on shares of Renasant from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Renasant presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $44.67.

Renasant Stock Performance

Renasant stock opened at $39.84 on Friday. Renasant Corp has a one year low of $32.41 and a one year high of $42.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.53 and a beta of 0.97.

Renasant (NYSE:RNST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.09. Renasant had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 14.47%.The company had revenue of $278.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $275.71 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Renasant Corp will post 3.67 EPS for the current year.

Renasant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from Renasant's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Renasant's dividend payout ratio is 38.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Mark Jeanfreau sold 6,000 shares of Renasant stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.88, for a total transaction of $227,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 65,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,468,715.36. The trade was a 8.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kelly Hutcheson sold 1,350 shares of Renasant stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.65, for a total value of $52,177.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 16,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at $646,537.20. This trade represents a 7.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 2.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Renasant Profile

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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