Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) Shares Cross Above 200 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $66.90 and traded as high as $67.51. Banner shares last traded at $67.31, with a volume of 304,477 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on BANR shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Banner in a report on Monday, September 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Banner from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Banner from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Banner from $74.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Benchmark started coverage on shares of Banner in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.75.

Banner Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market capitalization of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50 day moving average of $70.53 and a 200 day moving average of $66.91.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.46 by ($0.02). Banner had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 23.55%.The business had revenue of $172.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.54 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Banner Corporation will post 6.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th were issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Banner’s payout ratio is 34.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banner

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BANR. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Banner by 31.5% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 714 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new position in Banner during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Banner in the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Banner by 55.0% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Banner in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

About Banner

Banner Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Walla Walla, Washington. Its principal subsidiary, Banner Bank, is a community bank that provides financial services to individuals, families, businesses and nonprofit organizations.

Banner Bank offers deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, construction loans, business and consumer loans, mortgage services, treasury management and wealth management solutions. The bank also serves small and mid-sized businesses through commercial banking products and relationship-based financial services.

Founded in the Pacific Northwest, Banner has expanded its banking operations across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California and Utah.