Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) Short Interest Down 17.2% in March

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,800,000 shares, a drop of 17.2% from the March 15th total of 5,800,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,800,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Price Performance

ZION stock opened at $43.62 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $48.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.43. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a 52-week low of $39.32 and a 52-week high of $63.22. The company has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a PE ratio of 8.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.92. 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 (NASDAQ:ZION) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $795.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $792.49 million. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 15.70%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. Analysts predict that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Dividend Announcement

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

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on ZION shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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 on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. DA Davidson upped 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 report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $64.00 price objective on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Jennifer Anne Smith sold 22,673 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,313 shares in the company, valued at $1,655,305.11. This represents a 43.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a 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 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 $2,554,136.37. The trade was a 17.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,029 shares of company stock valued at $1,855,321. Insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Zions Bancorporation, National Association

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ZION. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $73,542,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 249.6% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,624,521 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $88,130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159,888 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the fourth quarter worth $51,116,000. Boston Partners bought a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the 4th quarter worth about $33,961,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 5,690.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 550,903 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,468,000 after buying an additional 541,389 shares during the period. 76.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Zions Bancorporation, National Association

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.