Banner Corporation $BANR Shares Sold by Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 475,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,943 shares during the quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.’s holdings in Banner were worth $28,844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BANR. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 241.2% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 454,807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,498,000 after acquiring an additional 321,522 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of Banner by 19.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,011,347 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $64,878,000 after purchasing an additional 165,557 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Banner by 60.7% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 366,689 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,977,000 after purchasing an additional 138,525 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in Banner by 307.8% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 173,742 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,380,000 after purchasing an additional 131,140 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC lifted its position in Banner by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 749,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,938,000 after purchasing an additional 113,632 shares during the period. 87.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BANR shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Banner in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings raised Banner from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Banner from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Banner from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $71.00.

Banner Price Performance

NASDAQ:BANR opened at $67.83 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Banner Corporation has a 52 week low of $57.05 and a 52 week high of $69.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $65.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 0.83.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $168.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.60 million. Banner had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 23.24%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Banner Corporation will post 6.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banner Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 5th. This is a positive change from Banner’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Banner’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.02%.

Banner Company Profile

Banner Corporation, through its principal subsidiary Banner Bank, operates as a regional commercial bank headquartered in Walla Walla, Washington. Founded in 2000 as a bank holding company, Banner traces its origins to community banking roots in Eastern Washington dating back to the late 19th century. Over the past two decades, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions, establishing a strong presence throughout the Pacific Northwest.

The company offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services for individual and business clients.