Short Interest in Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) Drops By 17.7%

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) saw a large drop in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,500,000 shares, a drop of 17.7% from the December 31st total of 5,470,000 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,320,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on ZION shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens increased their target price on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Compass Point boosted their price objective on Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $54.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Zions Bancorporation, National Association presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.71.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Price Performance

NASDAQ:ZION opened at $57.86 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $57.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.47. The stock has a market cap of $8.55 billion, a PE ratio of 11.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a one year low of $37.76 and a one year high of $63.22.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $820.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $787.70 million. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 13.65%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 13th will be given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Paul E. Burdiss sold 9,506 shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.06, for a total transaction of $580,436.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 86,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,265,325.92. The trade was a 9.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Eric Ellingsen sold 1,238 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.84, for a total transaction of $75,319.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 35,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,182,817.52. This trade represents a 3.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,496 shares of company stock worth $873,762 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Zions Bancorporation, National Association

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ZION. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 209.1% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,470 shares of the bank’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,671 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the third quarter worth about $119,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 15.2% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,837 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its position in Zions Bancorporation, National Association by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 3,918 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $170,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. 76.84% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.