Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:PNFP) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:PNFP) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,990,000 shares, a growth of 40.4% from the September 30th total of 2,130,000 shares. Currently, 3.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,470,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,470,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 3.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on PNFP. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 target price (down previously from $145.00) on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Pinnacle Financial Partners from $140.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays set a $120.00 price target on Pinnacle Financial Partners in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners from $121.00 to $108.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $110.27.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Price Performance

PNFP stock opened at $85.71 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.65 billion, a PE ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 1.02. Pinnacle Financial Partners has a 1-year low of $81.57 and a 1-year high of $131.91. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.05.

Pinnacle Financial Partners (NASDAQ:PNFP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $544.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $526.40 million. Pinnacle Financial Partners had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 19.17%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Pinnacle Financial Partners will post 7.85 EPS for the current year.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Pinnacle Financial Partners’s payout ratio is presently 12.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director G Kennedy Thompson bought 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $87.63 per share, for a total transaction of $438,150.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 33,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,924,388.36. The trade was a 17.62% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Pinnacle Financial Partners by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 7,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $718,000 after buying an additional 885 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in Pinnacle Financial Partners during the 3rd quarter worth $835,000. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in Pinnacle Financial Partners by 43.1% during the 3rd quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 94,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,853,000 after buying an additional 28,445 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in Pinnacle Financial Partners by 585.5% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 18,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,768,000 after purchasing an additional 15,732 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC raised its stake in Pinnacle Financial Partners by 71.8% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,492 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $609,000 after purchasing an additional 2,714 shares in the last quarter. 87.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Pinnacle Financial Partners

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as the bank holding company for Pinnacle Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and professional entities in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, including savings, noninterest-bearing and interest-bearing checking, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts; and provides treasury management services, which includes online wire origination, enhanced ACH origination services, positive pay, zero balance and sweep accounts, automated bill pay services, electronic receivables processing, lockbox processing, and merchant card acceptance services.