Fisher Asset Management LLC Sells 1,996 Shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

Fisher Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 283,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,996 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.82% of Banner worth $16,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Banner by 79.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,328,616 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $79,132,000 after purchasing an additional 588,591 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Banner by 18.4% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 795,929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,510,000 after acquiring an additional 123,903 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Banner by 22.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 607,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,170,000 after acquiring an additional 109,457 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Banner in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,477,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Banner by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,330,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $79,219,000 after purchasing an additional 43,398 shares during the period. 87.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Banner news, VP James P.G. Mclean sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.63, for a total value of $113,445.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,653,876.84. The trade was a 6.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BANR shares. Raymond James upped their price target on Banner from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Piper Sandler set a $67.00 price target on shares of Banner in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Banner from $60.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Banner has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.60.

Banner Stock Performance

Shares of BANR stock opened at $75.27 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.75 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85. Banner Co. has a one year low of $42.00 and a one year high of $78.05. The company’s 50-day moving average is $66.10 and its 200 day moving average is $57.20.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.12. Banner had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $213.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $152.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Banner Co. will post 4.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 5th. Banner’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Banner Profile

Banner Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Banner Bank that engages in the provision of commercial banking and financial products and services to individuals, businesses, and public sector entities in the United States. It accepts various deposit instruments, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, regular savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as treasury management services and retirement savings plans.