Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) Stock Price

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR - Free Report) had its target price decreased by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $75.00 to $73.00 in a report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded shares of Banner from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $71.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Banner in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Banner presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $70.83.

Banner Price Performance

Banner stock traded down $0.74 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $61.52. The company had a trading volume of 171,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 212,001. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $63.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.11. Banner has a 1 year low of $43.63 and a 1 year high of $78.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $2.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 0.94.

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

Banner Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 29th. Banner's payout ratio is 37.72%.

Institutional Trading of Banner

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Banner during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Banner during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Banner in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Banner by 167.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Banner by 53.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 754 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.