Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) Stock Price Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $63.68 and traded as high as $68.42. Banner shares last traded at $67.94, with a volume of 190,623 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Banner Trading Up 0.5%

The stock has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.44 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. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $65.18 and its 200 day moving average is $63.68.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.21. Banner had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 23.24%.The company had revenue of $168.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.60 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Banner Corporation will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.52 dividend. This is a positive change from Banner’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 5th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Banner’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banner

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Banner by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 146,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,910,000 after buying an additional 2,611 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Banner by 25.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 171,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,403,000 after buying an additional 34,679 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its stake in Banner by 10.1% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 24,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,506,000 after buying an additional 2,278 shares during the period. Amundi increased its position in Banner by 63.6% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 14,759 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 5,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Banner by 27.9% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 40,660 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,467,000 after acquiring an additional 8,870 shares during 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.