Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. Takes Position in First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. $FIBK

Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIBK) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 778,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $30,000,000. First Interstate BancSystem comprises approximately 1.5% of Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in First Interstate BancSystem in the 2nd quarter valued at about $529,533,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Interstate BancSystem by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,048,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $347,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214,454 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in First Interstate BancSystem by 20.4% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,915,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $188,525,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003,021 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 4.3% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,630,789 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $188,066,000 after acquiring an additional 231,405 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of First Interstate BancSystem by 29.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,482,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $189,686,000 after acquiring an additional 1,254,321 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.71% of the company’s stock.

First Interstate BancSystem Stock Performance

FIBK opened at $37.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.69. First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. has a 52-week low of $29.10 and a 52-week high of $40.60. The firm has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.45 and a beta of 0.76. The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.28 and its 200-day moving average is $36.18.

First Interstate BancSystem (NASDAQ:FIBK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.18. First Interstate BancSystem had a return on equity of 9.55% and a net margin of 23.63%.The business had revenue of $263.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $249.32 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. First Interstate BancSystem’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. will post 2.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Interstate BancSystem Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. First Interstate BancSystem’s payout ratio is presently 57.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Jonathan R. Scott sold 4,500 shares of First Interstate BancSystem stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.29, for a total value of $163,305.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 862,128 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,286,625.12. This trade represents a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Julie A. Scott sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.97, for a total transaction of $539,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 488,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,566,273.23. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,392 shares of company stock valued at $1,161,552. 8.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered First Interstate BancSystem from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $38.00 to $37.00 in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective on shares of First Interstate BancSystem in a report on Monday, July 27th. UBS Group increased their price objective on First Interstate BancSystem from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised First Interstate BancSystem from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $34.00 target price (down from $36.00) on shares of First Interstate BancSystem in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $36.83.

First Interstate BancSystem Profile

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Billings, Montana. Through its principal subsidiary, First Interstate Bank, the company provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its offerings include business lending, commercial real estate financing, agricultural loans, residential mortgage products, and deposit accounts suitable for individuals, small businesses, and large corporations.

The company traces its roots back to the late 1960s and has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions across the Western United States.