Vestcor Inc Takes $466,000 Position in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc invested approximately $466,000 to acquire 9,347 shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. during the first quarter, according to a recent SEC filing.
• Zions Bancorporation recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.43 to $0.45, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 3.5%.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments about Zions Bancorporation, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.78 per share.

Vestcor Inc bought a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 9,347 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $466,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,807,221 shares of the bank's stock valued at $369,295,000 after acquiring an additional 175,656 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 20.8% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,267,568 shares of the bank's stock worth $123,016,000 after buying an additional 390,601 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 249.6% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,624,521 shares of the bank's stock worth $88,130,000 after buying an additional 1,159,888 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,473,712 shares of the bank's stock worth $79,949,000 after buying an additional 284,624 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 949,575 shares of the bank's stock valued at $51,514,000 after purchasing an additional 85,009 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.84% of the company's stock.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:ZION traded up $0.84 during trading on Friday, hitting $52.04. 728,634 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,613,670. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $52.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.66. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. has a 12-month low of $39.32 and a 12-month high of $63.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.51, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 21st. The bank reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.27. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. had a net margin of 16.98% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The company had revenue of $838.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $810.24 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.28 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Zions Bancorporation, N.A. will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. This is an increase from Zions Bancorporation, N.A.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Zions Bancorporation, N.A.'s dividend payout ratio is 31.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ZION shares. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $55.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $65.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Zions Bancorporation, N.A. presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.78.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Company Profile

Zions Bancorporation, National Association provides various banking products and related services primarily in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. It operates through Zions Bank, California Bank & Trust, Amegy Bank, National Bank of Arizona, Nevada State Bank, Vectra Bank Colorado, and The Commerce Bank of Washington segments.