Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Raises Stake in Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in shares of Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) by 19.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 769 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Banner were worth $316,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Banner by 395.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 166,120 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,894,000 after buying an additional 132,586 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Banner by 30.5% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $835,000 after purchasing an additional 3,275 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in Banner by 97.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 75,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,512,000 after purchasing an additional 37,390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Banner by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 823,763 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,073,000 after purchasing an additional 11,808 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

Banner Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BANR opened at $56.79 on Friday. Banner Co. has a twelve month low of $42.00 and a twelve month high of $78.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.08.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Banner Co. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. Banner’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on BANR. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Banner in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. DA Davidson upped their price target on Banner from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Banner has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.20.

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.