Banner Corporation $BANR Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Banner Corporation by 14.0%, selling 5,820 shares and now holding approximately 0.10% of the company valued at $2.27 million.
• Banner Corporation recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.9% and a payout ratio of 36.57%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Banner, with DA Davidson raising its target price to $72.00, while Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock from "hold" to "sell."

Rafferty Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR - Free Report) by 14.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,820 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Banner worth $2,271,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Banner by 13.1% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Banner by 5.0% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 4,808 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position 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 period. USA Financial Formulas raised its holdings in shares of Banner by 69.1% during the 1st quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 805 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Banner by 20.1% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,989 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the period. 87.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banner Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BANR traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $67.09. 43,096 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 216,169. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $63.85. Banner Corporation has a 52 week low of $53.78 and a 52 week high of $78.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Banner Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.