Fisher Asset Management LLC Has $26.59 Million Holdings in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) by 40.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 398,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 114,731 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Banner were worth $26,586,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Foundry Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Banner by 2.3% during the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 6,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $369,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Banner by 3.0% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in Banner during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Banner during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Banner by 46.0% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on BANR shares. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Banner in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Banner from $69.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Banner has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.20.

Banner Stock Performance

Shares of Banner stock opened at $68.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.02 and a beta of 1.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $68.69 and its 200-day moving average is $66.33. Banner Co. has a one year low of $42.00 and a one year high of $78.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.11. Banner had a return on equity of 10.03% and a net margin of 20.28%. Equities analysts predict that Banner Co. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banner Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. Banner’s payout ratio is presently 39.34%.

About Banner

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.