Renasant Corp $RNST Position Increased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Renasant Corp (NYSE:RNST) by 178.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,261,160 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 808,316 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 1.34% of Renasant worth $45,566,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of Renasant by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 13,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $491,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Renasant by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 21,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $764,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Renasant by 27.1% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Renasant by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 9,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Renasant by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 9,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.31% of the company’s stock.

Renasant Price Performance

Shares of Renasant stock opened at $43.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10 and a beta of 0.96. Renasant Corp has a 1-year low of $33.04 and a 1-year high of $44.50.

Renasant (NYSE:RNST) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $278.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.71 million. Renasant had a net margin of 14.47% and a return on equity of 8.17%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Renasant Corp will post 3.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Renasant Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were given a $0.24 dividend. This is an increase from Renasant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. Renasant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.83%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Connie L. Engel sold 1,257 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.90, for a total transaction of $51,411.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 15,449 shares in the company, valued at $631,864.10. The trade was a 7.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman C Mitchell Waycaster sold 12,704 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.50, for a total value of $501,808.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 183,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,237,782.50. This represents a 6.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,611 shares of company stock valued at $618,889. 2.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Renasant in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Renasant in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Hovde Group upped their price objective on shares of Renasant from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $45.50.

Renasant Profile

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. It operates through three segments: Community Banks, Insurance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banks segment offers checking and savings accounts, business and personal loans, asset-based lending, and equipment leasing services, as well as safe deposit and night depository facilities. It also provides commercial, financial, and agricultural loans; equipment financing and leasing; real estate–1-4 family mortgage; real estate–commercial mortgage; real estate–construction loans for the construction of single family residential properties, multi-family properties, and commercial projects; installment loans to individuals; and interim construction loans, as well as automated teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, call center, and treasury management services.