First Trust Advisors LP Boosts Holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION)

First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION - Free Report) by 20.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,267,568 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 390,601 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 1.54% of Zions Bancorporation, National Association worth $123,016,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ZION. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 541 shares of the bank's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 128.1% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 853 shares of the bank's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares during the period. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 120.8% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 901 shares of the bank's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $115,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.84% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.71, for a total value of $557,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,554,136.37. This represents a 17.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total value of $1,280,344.31. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,655,305.11. The trade was a 43.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,029 shares of company stock worth $1,855,321 in the last ninety days. 2.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ZION shares. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $63.00 to $53.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $71.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zions Bancorporation, National Association currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $59.00.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of ZION traded down $0.41 during trading on Friday, reaching $44.84. 992,928 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,573,426. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.27. The stock has a market cap of $6.62 billion, a PE ratio of 9.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.92. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a twelve month low of $39.32 and a twelve month high of $63.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.04. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 15.70%. The business had revenue of $795.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $792.49 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, February 24th that permits the company to buyback $40.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to buy up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. Zions Bancorporation, National Association's payout ratio is currently 33.59%.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association 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.