Renasant Co. $RNST Shares Sold by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Renasant Co. (NASDAQ:RNST) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,069,920 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 51,918 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in Renasant were worth $74,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Renasant by 22.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,789,556 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $298,230,000 after acquiring an additional 1,582,105 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Renasant by 48.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,203,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $79,169,000 after purchasing an additional 714,972 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Renasant by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,646,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,163,000 after purchasing an additional 79,508 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Renasant by 232.8% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,590,935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,980,000 after buying an additional 1,112,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Renasant by 39.5% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,065,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,161,000 after buying an additional 301,748 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Cowen began coverage on shares of Renasant in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Renasant from $45.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Hovde Group raised Renasant from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $41.00 in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Renasant in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.17.

Renasant Stock Down 0.3%

NASDAQ:RNST opened at $34.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $36.01 and a 200-day moving average of $36.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.59 and a beta of 0.98. Renasant Co. has a 52 week low of $26.97 and a 52 week high of $40.40.

Renasant (NASDAQ:RNST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.02). Renasant had a net margin of 17.91% and a return on equity of 6.58%. The company had revenue of $269.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $271.96 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. Analysts predict that Renasant Co. will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

Renasant Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 18th will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 18th. This is an increase from Renasant’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Renasant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.23%.

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.