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

Renasant Co. (NASDAQ:RNST) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $41.00.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Renasant from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Renasant from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens boosted their price objective on Renasant from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James raised Renasant from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Renasant from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Kelly Hutcheson sold 1,310 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total value of $48,103.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 17,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $645,757.92. This represents a 6.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Renasant

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Renasant by 81.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 263,353 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,559,000 after buying an additional 117,950 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Renasant by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 308,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,018,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Renasant by 122.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $910,000 after purchasing an additional 15,203 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Renasant in the fourth quarter worth approximately $248,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in shares of Renasant during the fourth quarter worth approximately $399,000. 77.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Renasant Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ RNST opened at $33.82 on Friday. Renasant has a 12-month low of $26.97 and a 12-month high of $39.63. The company has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a PE ratio of 10.34 and a beta of 0.86. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Renasant (NASDAQ:RNST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $170.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 prior year, the business posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Renasant will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

Renasant Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. Renasant’s payout ratio is presently 27.33%.

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.