KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $1.63 Million in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 30,000 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,628,000.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ZION. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $71.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $71.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zions Bancorporation, National Association has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $60.94.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Stock Performance

Shares of ZION opened at $49.47 on Friday. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a 12-month low of $39.05 and a 12-month high of $63.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $7.30 billion, a PE ratio of 9.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $53.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.65.

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

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Announces Dividend

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

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total transaction of $1,280,344.31. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,655,305.11. This trade represents a 43.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.71, for a total value of $557,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 45,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,554,136.37. This represents a 17.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,713 shares of company stock worth $1,839,686 in the last quarter. 2.22% of the stock is owned by 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.