Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Purchases 59,653 Shares of Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Banner Corporation (NASDAQ:BANR) by 4.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,439,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 59,653 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 4.17% of Banner worth $91,776,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Banner in the first quarter worth about $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Banner by 53.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas grew its position in Banner by 69.1% in the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in Banner by 816.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its position in Banner by 13.1% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. 87.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Banner Stock Up 4.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:BANR opened at $64.90 on Wednesday. Banner Corporation has a 1 year low of $52.86 and a 1 year high of $78.05. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $64.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a PE ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.03. Banner had a return on equity of 10.06% and a net margin of 21.15%. The business had revenue of $162.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.96 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Banner Corporation will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Banner Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Banner’s payout ratio is presently 36.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on BANR. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded Banner from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $71.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Banner in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered Banner from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Banner from $75.00 to $73.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on Banner from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.