Renasant Co. (NASDAQ:RNST) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Renasant Co. (NASDAQ:RNST) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $41.00.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on RNST shares. Hovde Group upped their price target on Renasant from $34.50 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Raymond James raised Renasant from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Renasant from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th.

Renasant Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of RNST stock opened at $35.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 0.91. Renasant has a twelve month low of $26.97 and a twelve month high of $39.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.96.

Renasant (NASDAQ:RNST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $170.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $170.38 million. Renasant had a return on equity of 6.58% and a net margin of 17.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Renasant will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Renasant Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. Renasant’s payout ratio is 27.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Renasant

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Renasant by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 308,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,018,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of Renasant in the fourth quarter worth about $248,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Renasant by 376.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 605,303 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,640,000 after buying an additional 478,266 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Renasant by 38.9% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 209,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,475,000 after buying an additional 58,526 shares during the period. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new position in shares of Renasant in the fourth quarter worth about $399,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.31% of the company’s stock.

About Renasant

Renasant Corporation operates as a bank holding company for Renasant Bank that provides a range of financial, wealth management, fiduciary, and insurance services to retail and commercial customers. The company operates through Community Banks, Insurance, and Wealth Management segments. The Community Banks segment offers checking and savings accounts, business and personal loans, asset-based lending, and factoring equipment leasing services, as well as safe deposit and night depository facilities.