Rafferty Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in Renasant Co. (NASDAQ:RNST)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Renasant Co. (NASDAQ:RNST) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 91,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,348 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.14% of Renasant worth $3,264,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of RNST. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Renasant by 183.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 137,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,461,000 after buying an additional 88,783 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Renasant by 122.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $910,000 after acquiring an additional 15,203 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Renasant by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 299,485 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,733,000 after acquiring an additional 21,683 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Renasant by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,001 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Renasant in the fourth quarter valued at about $208,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.31% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Renasant news, CAO Kelly Hutcheson sold 1,310 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total transaction of $48,103.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 17,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $645,757.92. This trade represents a 6.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.81% of the company’s stock.

Renasant Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ RNST opened at $35.91 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $32.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.10. Renasant Co. has a 1 year low of $26.97 and a 1 year high of $39.63.

Renasant (NASDAQ:RNST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.06. Renasant had a net margin of 17.91% and a return on equity of 6.58%. The business had revenue of $170.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.38 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Renasant Co. will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Renasant Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Renasant’s payout ratio is currently 27.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on RNST. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Renasant from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Renasant from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Renasant from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Renasant from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their target price on shares of Renasant from $34.50 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.00.

About Renasant

Renasant Corporation operates as a bank holding company for Renasant Bank that provides a range of financial, wealth management, fiduciary, and insurance services to retail and commercial customers. The company operates through Community Banks, Insurance, and Wealth Management segments. The Community Banks segment offers checking and savings accounts, business and personal loans, asset-based lending, and factoring equipment leasing services, as well as safe deposit and night depository facilities.