Short Interest in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) Expands By 27.1%

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,200,000 shares, a growth of 27.1% from the January 31st total of 4,090,000 shares. Approximately 3.6% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,260,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Insider Activity at Zions Bancorporation, National Association

In related news, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.71, for a total value of $557,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,554,136.37. This represents a 17.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total transaction of $1,280,344.31. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,313 shares in the company, valued at $1,655,305.11. This represents a 43.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,713 shares of company stock valued at $1,839,686 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.22% of the company's stock.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Zions Bancorporation, National Association

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,037,323 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,032,775,000 after purchasing an additional 285,588 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 14.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,041,818 shares of the bank's stock worth $332,515,000 after purchasing an additional 896,889 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,807,221 shares of the bank's stock worth $369,295,000 after purchasing an additional 175,656 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,882,983 shares of the bank's stock worth $264,902,000 after purchasing an additional 194,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,698,530 shares of the bank's stock worth $146,396,000 after purchasing an additional 14,070 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.84% of the company's stock.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Price Performance

ZION traded down $0.18 on Friday, reaching $50.15. The company had a trading volume of 1,876,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,338,831. The company has a fifty day moving average of $55.62 and a 200-day moving average of $53.51. The company has a market capitalization of $7.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.13, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a one year low of $39.05 and a one year high of $63.22.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $820.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $787.70 million. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 13.65%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association's revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.75%.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to buy up to 0.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on ZION shares. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $64.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $71.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Compass Point increased their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $54.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $60.71.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Company Profile

Zions Bancorporation, National Association provides various banking products and related services primarily in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. It operates through Zions Bank, California Bank & Trust, Amegy Bank, National Bank of Arizona, Nevada State Bank, Vectra Bank Colorado, and The Commerce Bank of Washington segments.