Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 816,400 shares, a decrease of 20.7% from the January 15th total of 1,030,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 224,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days. Currently, 2.4% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Banner from $69.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Banner in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.20.

Banner Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BANR traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $69.50. 222,137 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 214,623. The business's 50-day moving average price is $68.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24 and a beta of 1.09. Banner has a 12 month low of $42.00 and a 12 month high of $78.05. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts predict that Banner will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. Banner's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.34%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banner

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Banner by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,785,319 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $106,334,000 after buying an additional 193,434 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Banner by 28.1% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,701,653 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $113,619,000 after buying an additional 373,037 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Banner by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,379,521 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $92,111,000 after acquiring an additional 49,457 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Banner by 1.5% in the third 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. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Banner by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 738,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $49,300,000 after buying an additional 38,454 shares in the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is owned by 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.