Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The bank reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.06, Zacks reports. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 13.65%.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Trading Down 1.5 %

NASDAQ:ZION traded down $0.66 on Monday, hitting $43.62. The stock had a trading volume of 2,685,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,759,370. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a 1-year low of $39.32 and a 1-year high of $63.22. The stock has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.81, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $49.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.94%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. Zions Bancorporation, National Association’s payout ratio is 34.75%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Steven Dan Stephens sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.47, for a total value of $1,280,344.31. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,655,305.11. This represents a 43.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,029 shares of company stock valued at $1,855,321 over the last quarter. 2.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ZION has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $62.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 28th. Barclays lifted their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.81.

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.