Vanguard Group Inc. Has $268.21 Million Stock Holdings in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,016,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 19,273 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.66% of Banner worth $268,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in shares of Banner during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Banner during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Banner by 167.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Banner by 46.0% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its position in shares of Banner by 21.8% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,749 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

Banner Trading Down 3.4 %

NASDAQ BANR opened at $56.52 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 1.07. Banner Co. has a 52 week low of $42.00 and a 52 week high of $78.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $66.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.11. Banner had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 10.03%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Banner Co. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. Banner’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BANR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of Banner in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.20.

Banner Company 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.