Zions Bancorporation, National Association Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:ZION)

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Investors acquired 6,063 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 82% compared to the average daily volume of 3,331 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zions Bancorporation, National Association

In other news, VP Bruce K. Alexander sold 5,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.83, for a total value of $267,235.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 17,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $925,528.31. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, President Scott J. Mclean sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.83, for a total value of $3,109,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 74,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,850,243.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Bruce K. Alexander sold 5,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.83, for a total transaction of $267,235.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 17,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $925,528.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 67,073 shares of company stock worth $3,476,298 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Zions Bancorporation, National Association

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ZION. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Zions Bancorporation, National Association in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.84% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ZION shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.83.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Stock Performance

Shares of Zions Bancorporation, National Association stock opened at $46.49 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.09. Zions Bancorporation, National Association has a 12 month low of $28.90 and a 12 month high of $53.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association (NASDAQ:ZION) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The bank reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $776.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $761.61 million. Zions Bancorporation, National Association had a net margin of 13.53% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.11 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Zions Bancorporation, National Association will post 4.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Zions Bancorporation, National Association Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. Zions Bancorporation, National Association’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.21%.

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.