Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $71.1667.

BANR has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Banner from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Banner from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Banner in a report on Monday, December 1st.

Banner Price Performance

Shares of BANR opened at $58.47 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $62.30 and its 200-day moving average is $63.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a PE ratio of 10.37 and a beta of 0.88. Banner has a fifty-two week low of $54.01 and a fifty-two week high of $69.83.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.09. Banner had a net margin of 22.26% and a return on equity of 10.46%. The business had revenue of $169.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $173.23 million. Equities analysts forecast that Banner will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 3rd. Banner’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.46%.

Institutional Trading of Banner

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Banner during the 3rd quarter valued at $16,500,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Banner by 14.5% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 134,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,838,000 after purchasing an additional 17,067 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. increased its position in shares of Banner by 86.8% in the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 59,947 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,846,000 after purchasing an additional 27,863 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in Banner in the second quarter valued at about $1,362,000. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its stake in Banner by 3.2% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,179,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,692,000 after purchasing an additional 36,940 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

About Banner

Banner Corporation, through its principal subsidiary Banner Bank, operates as a regional commercial bank headquartered in Walla Walla, Washington. Founded in 2000 as a bank holding company, Banner traces its origins to community banking roots in Eastern Washington dating back to the late 19th century. Over the past two decades, the company has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions, establishing a strong presence throughout the Pacific Northwest.

The company offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services for individual and business clients.