Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Banner Corporation $BANR

Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) by 3.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 890 shares during the period. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. owned 0.06% of Banner worth $1,414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Banner by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 171,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,942,000 after purchasing an additional 4,503 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in Banner by 173.9% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 70,242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,479,000 after purchasing an additional 44,597 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Banner by 26.3% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its position in Banner by 39.1% during the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 39,477 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,517,000 after purchasing an additional 11,089 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 141.4% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 29,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,854,000 after buying an additional 17,030 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

Banner Stock Down 2.9%

NASDAQ:BANR opened at $61.04 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a PE ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 0.91. Banner Corporation has a twelve month low of $54.01 and a twelve month high of $78.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company’s 50 day moving average is $65.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.75.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $162.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.96 million. Banner had a net margin of 21.15% and a return on equity of 10.06%. Analysts anticipate that Banner Corporation will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. Banner’s payout ratio is presently 36.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BANR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Banner in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Banner from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Banner from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.17.

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.