Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. Reduces Stock Holdings in Banner Corporation $BANR

Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. reduced its holdings in Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) by 35.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 216,813 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 119,843 shares during the period. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 0.64% of Banner worth $13,586,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 41,634 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,727,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,154 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $141,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 6,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $415,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 12.9% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,828 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 31,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,041,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banner Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BANR opened at $67.24 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $64.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.55. Banner Corporation has a 1 year low of $57.05 and a 1 year high of $69.83. The company has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.21. Banner had a net margin of 23.24% and a return on equity of 10.77%. The firm had revenue of $168.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.60 million. On average, research analysts predict that Banner Corporation will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Banner Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is an increase from Banner’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 5th. Banner’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BANR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Banner in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Banner from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Banner from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Banner from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Banner in a report on Monday, May 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.00.

Banner Company Profile

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.