StockNews.com Upgrades Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) to Hold

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

BANR has been the subject of several other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Banner from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 target price (down from $77.00) on shares of Banner in a report on Monday, April 21st. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Banner in a report on Monday, April 21st. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott raised Banner from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $71.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Banner presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.83.

Banner Stock Performance

Shares of BANR stock opened at $61.56 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $62.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.17. 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 has a 1 year low of $43.63 and a 1 year high of $78.05. The firm has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 0.94.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banner

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Banner by 28.1% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,701,653 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $113,619,000 after acquiring an additional 373,037 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 49,457 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew 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 worth $49,300,000 after purchasing an additional 38,454 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Banner by 10,213.3% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 634,579 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,371,000 after purchasing an additional 628,426 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Banner by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 487,951 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,580,000 after purchasing an additional 70,544 shares in the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Banner

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.