Prudential Financial Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION)

Prudential Financial Inc. increased its position in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) by 88.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 229,948 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 108,087 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association were worth $12,475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 541 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,511 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,263 shares of the bank’s stock worth $937,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the period. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,027 shares of the bank’s stock worth $490,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 42,839 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,324,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.84% of the company’s stock.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Stock Performance

ZION stock opened at $49.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $7.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.99, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $53.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.65. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a 1-year low of $39.05 and a 1-year high of $63.22.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $820.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $787.70 million. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 13.65%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 5.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. Zions Bancorporation, National Association’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.75%.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, February 24th that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to purchase up to 0.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ZION has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Compass Point increased their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $54.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $71.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Zions Bancorporation, National Association currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.94.

Insider Activity at Zions Bancorporation, National Association

In related news, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total transaction of $1,280,344.31. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 29,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,655,305.11. This represents a 43.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.71, for a total transaction of $557,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,847 shares in the company, valued at $2,554,136.37. This represents a 17.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,713 shares of company stock valued at $1,839,686 over the last quarter. 2.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Company Profile

Zions Bancorporation, National Association provides various banking products and related services primarily in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. It operates through Zions Bank, California Bank & Trust, Amegy Bank, National Bank of Arizona, Nevada State Bank, Vectra Bank Colorado, and The Commerce Bank of Washington segments.