Brokerages Set Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) PT at $70.75

Shares of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the five analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $70.75.

BANR has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Banner from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen raised Banner from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings raised Banner from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of Banner in a research note on Monday, May 4th.

Banner Stock Down 1.8%

NASDAQ BANR opened at $62.58 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $62.52 and a 200-day moving average of $62.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 0.85. Banner has a 52 week low of $57.05 and a 52 week high of $69.83. 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 released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $168.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.60 million. Banner had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 23.24%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Banner will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Banner Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 5th were given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 5th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is an increase from Banner’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Banner’s dividend payout ratio is 35.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Banner by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 17,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,097,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position 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 worth $2,727,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its position 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 worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Banner by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 10,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position 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 worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.