Picton Mahoney Asset Management Acquires 1,736 Shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) by 56.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,820 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,736 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management’s holdings in Banner were worth $321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BANR. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in shares of Banner during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Banner during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Banner by 167.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Banner by 287.1% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Banner by 46.0% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 522 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

Banner Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BANR opened at $64.01 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.70. Banner Co. has a fifty-two week low of $42.00 and a fifty-two week high of $78.05. The company has a market capitalization of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 1.07. 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) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.11. Banner had a return on equity of 10.03% and a net margin of 20.28%. Analysts expect that Banner Co. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. Banner’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on BANR. DA Davidson increased their price target 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. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of Banner in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Banner from $69.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.20.

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.