Zions Bancorporation (NASDAQ:ZION) Shares Sold by Sippican Capital Advisors

Sippican Capital Advisors decreased its stake in Zions Bancorporation (NASDAQ:ZION) by 0.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,985 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation makes up about 1.4% of Sippican Capital Advisors’ holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Sippican Capital Advisors’ holdings in Zions Bancorporation were worth $1,273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Zions Bancorporation by 3.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,363,376 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $855,261,000 after buying an additional 754,639 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Zions Bancorporation by 4,464.8% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 11,741,470 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $493,142,000 after buying an additional 11,484,250 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Zions Bancorporation by 11.6% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,598,091 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $277,120,000 after buying an additional 684,015 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Zions Bancorporation by 2.9% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,285,312 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $137,983,000 after buying an additional 91,786 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Zions Bancorporation by 9.3% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,158,321 shares of the bank’s stock worth $90,556,000 after buying an additional 183,595 shares during the last quarter. 94.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shares of Zions Bancorporation (ZION) opened at 46.12 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.37 and a beta of 1.44. Zions Bancorporation has a 52-week low of $26.75 and a 52-week high of $48.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.97 and its 200 day moving average is $42.59.

Zions Bancorporation (NASDAQ:ZION) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.11. Zions Bancorporation had a net margin of 21.97% and a return on equity of 8.14%. The company had revenue of $660 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $640.34 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Zions Bancorporation will post $2.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zions Bancorporation declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $465.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the bank to purchase up to 5.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 17th will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 15th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. This is a positive change from Zions Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Zions Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.75%.

TRADEMARK VIOLATION WARNING: This piece was published by [[site]] and is the property of of [[site]]. If you are reading this piece on another website, it was stolen and reposted in violation of U.S. & international copyright & trademark legislation. The legal version of this piece can be viewed at [[permalink]].

A number of analysts have commented on ZION shares. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Zions Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $47.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 28th. Deutsche Bank AG upgraded shares of Zions Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $46.00 in a report on Thursday, May 4th. BidaskClub upgraded shares of Zions Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 13th. Jefferies Group LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $49.00 price objective on shares of Zions Bancorporation in a report on Thursday, June 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (up previously from $43.00) on shares of Zions Bancorporation in a report on Monday, June 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.55.

In other news, insider David E. Blackford sold 942 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.44, for a total value of $38,094.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,415 shares in the company, valued at $1,189,542.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Leeanne B. Linderman sold 29,078 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.00, for a total transaction of $1,192,198.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,746 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $645,586. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 55,717 shares of company stock valued at $2,309,228 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.46% of the company’s stock.

About Zions Bancorporation

Zions Bancorporation is a financial holding company. The Company conducts its banking operations through separately managed and branded segments, including Zions Bank, Amegy Bank, California Bank & Trust, National Bank of Arizona, Nevada State Bank (NSB), Vectra Bank Colorado, The Commerce Bank of Washington (TCBW) and Other.