Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) Stock Position Cut by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its stake in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR - Free Report) by 80.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,023 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,384 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Banner were worth $402,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Banner by 97.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 75,768 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,512,000 after purchasing an additional 37,390 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Banner by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 823,763 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $49,073,000 after purchasing an additional 11,808 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Banner by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 409,885 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $24,413,000 after acquiring an additional 29,174 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Banner by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 11,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in shares of Banner during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 87.33% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BANR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Banner in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Banner from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down previously from $77.00) on shares of Banner in a research report on Monday. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded Banner from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $71.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.83.

Banner Trading Up 2.7 %

BANR stock traded up $1.64 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $62.94. 10,836 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 211,232. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.90 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.12. Banner Co. has a 12-month low of $43.63 and a 12-month high of $78.05.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.06. Banner had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 10.03%. The business had revenue of $159.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.72 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.22 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Banner Co. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 29th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. Banner's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.72%.

Banner Profile

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.