Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P. Invests $3.75 Million in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. $ZION

Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 54,270 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $3,755,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $982,244,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,477,126 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $430,813,000 after buying an additional 56,438 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 3,888,064 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $227,607,000 after buying an additional 48,346 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,151,319 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $184,478,000 after buying an additional 306,717 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. by 31.6% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,963,545 shares of the bank’s stock worth $167,677,000 after acquiring an additional 711,218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.84% of the company’s stock.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Stock Up 1.1%

NASDAQ:ZION opened at $68.32 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. has a 12-month low of $46.19 and a 12-month high of $73.34. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.81.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. (NASDAQ:ZION) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The bank reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $877.44 million. Zions Bancorporation, N.A. had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 23.92%.The company’s revenue was up 35.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Zions Bancorporation, N.A. will post 6.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Saturday, May 2nd that authorizes the company to buyback $225.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the bank to repurchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th were given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is an increase from Zions Bancorporation, N.A.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Zions Bancorporation, N.A.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Zions Bancorporation, N.A. news, President Scott J. Mclean sold 33,285 shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.63, for a total transaction of $2,350,919.55. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 73,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,159,027.09. The trade was a 31.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Scott A. Law sold 4,608 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.42, for a total value of $333,711.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 32,890 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,381,893.80. The trade was a 12.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 88,787 shares of company stock valued at $6,283,858. 1.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stephens cut their price target on Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $82.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, N.A. from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.29.

About Zions Bancorporation, N.A.

Zions Bancorporation, N.A. is a bank holding company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, offering a full suite of banking and financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions. Through its primary subsidiary, Zions Bank, the company provides commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management solutions designed to serve the needs of small businesses, middle‐market firms and high‐net‐worth clients. Its service portfolio includes deposit accounts, cash‐management tools, lending products, mortgage origination, treasury services and investment advisory services.

The company’s commercial banking segment delivers custom credit and treasury management services, including working capital lines of credit, equipment financing and international trade finance.