Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $11.24 Million Holdings in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 206,792 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,173 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.60% of Banner worth $11,243,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BANR. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Banner by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 237,586 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,015,000 after buying an additional 54,173 shares during the period. Peregrine Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Banner by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 168,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,181,000 after buying an additional 10,126 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in shares of Banner by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 9,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 306 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co. MA grew its position in shares of Banner by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 26,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,459,000 after buying an additional 2,699 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Banner by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,342,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $148,058,000 after purchasing an additional 10,449 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.88% of the company’s stock.

Banner Stock Performance

Shares of BANR opened at $43.69 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.81. Banner Co. has a twelve month low of $41.57 and a twelve month high of $75.72. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $45.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $49.87. The firm has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.57 and a beta of 1.01.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $150.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.26 million. Banner had a net margin of 28.30% and a return on equity of 14.40%. On average, analysts forecast that Banner Co. will post 5.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 1st were issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 31st. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.39%. Banner’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Banner

In related news, Director Roberto R. Herencia acquired 667 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $45.77 per share, for a total transaction of $30,528.59. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 12,839 shares in the company, valued at $587,641.03. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BANR. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Banner from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Banner from $58.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 21st. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Banner in a report on Thursday, July 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Banner presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.40.

Banner Profile

Banner Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Banner Bank that provide 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.