Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:PNFP) Shares Sold by GW&K Investment Management LLC

GW&K Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:PNFP) by 17.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 761,203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 161,411 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners makes up approximately 0.7% of GW&K Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. GW&K Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Pinnacle Financial Partners were worth $87,074,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Azora Capital LP bought a new position in Pinnacle Financial Partners in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $64,326,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in Pinnacle Financial Partners by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,716,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $266,127,000 after acquiring an additional 282,016 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners in the third quarter worth $21,576,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners by 27.0% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 983,282 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $96,332,000 after purchasing an additional 208,938 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners by 212.1% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 291,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,580,000 after purchasing an additional 198,246 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Harold R. Carpenter sold 3,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.57, for a total transaction of $383,114.07. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 60,805 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,635,283.85. This trade represents a 4.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David B. Ingram sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.02, for a total transaction of $2,520,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 92,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,665,041.30. This represents a 17.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 166,970 shares of company stock valued at $20,474,461. Company insiders own 1.87% of the company’s stock.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PNFP opened at $113.07 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $110.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.62 and a 52-week high of $131.91.

Pinnacle Financial Partners (NASDAQ:PNFP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.10. Pinnacle Financial Partners had a return on equity of 9.04% and a net margin of 15.48%. The firm had revenue of $475.34 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $470.33 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.68 EPS. Pinnacle Financial Partners’s revenue was up 19.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. will post 7.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This is an increase from Pinnacle Financial Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Pinnacle Financial Partners’s dividend payout ratio is 16.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PNFP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upgraded shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $120.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $142.00 price objective on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Pinnacle Financial Partners from $140.00 to $138.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Pinnacle Financial Partners from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Pinnacle Financial Partners from $123.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 31st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.18.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Profile

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as the bank holding company for Pinnacle Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and professional entities in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, including savings, noninterest-bearing and interest-bearing checking, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts; and provides treasury management services, which includes online wire origination, enhanced ACH origination services, positive pay, zero balance and sweep accounts, automated bill pay services, electronic receivables processing, lockbox processing, and merchant card acceptance services.