Vest Financial LLC Grows Position in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. $ZION

Key Points

• Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in Zions by 129.1% in Q4 to 56,420 shares, valued at about $3.30 million.
• Company insiders sold 55,581 shares (~$3.50 million) over the last quarter, including VP Eric Ellingsen and EVP Jennifer Anne Smith, leaving insiders with 1.43% ownership.
• Zions beat the quarter with EPS of $1.56 (vs. $1.43 est.), trades near $62.58 with a P/E of 9.73, and pays a $0.45 quarterly dividend (annual yield ~2.9%); analysts' consensus is "Hold" with an average target of $65.53.

Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION - Free Report) by 129.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,420 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 31,798 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC's holdings in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. were worth $3,303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Community Bank N.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.84% of the company's stock.

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

In related news, VP Eric Ellingsen sold 1,519 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.27, for a total transaction of $93,069.13. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 40,361 shares in the company, valued at $2,472,918.47. This trade represents a 3.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 6,558 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.80, for a total value of $424,958.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,215,712.80. The trade was a 25.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 55,581 shares of company stock worth $3,498,774 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.43% of the company's stock.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Price Performance

ZION opened at $62.58 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $58.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. has a 1 year low of $43.64 and a 1 year high of $66.18. The firm has a market cap of $9.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.73, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.81.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The bank reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.13. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 19.53%.The business had revenue of $849.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $853.73 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Zions Bancorporation, N.A. will post 6.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 12th. Zions Bancorporation, N.A.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen increased their target price on Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stephens upped their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Evercore upped their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zions Bancorporation, N.A. currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.53.

About Zions Bancorporation, N.A.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.