Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The bank reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.06, Zacks reports. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 13.65%.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ZION traded down $0.66 during trading on Monday, reaching $43.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,685,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,759,370. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.46. 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 12 month low of $39.32 and a 12 month high of $63.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 8.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.92.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.94%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zions Bancorporation, National Association

In related news, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total value of $1,280,344.31. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,655,305.11. This represents a 43.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,554,136.37. This represents a 17.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,029 shares of company stock worth $1,855,321 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 0.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on ZION. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $71.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.81.

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.