Raymond James Downgrades Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) to Underperform

Raymond James lowered shares of Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) from a market perform rating to an underperform rating in a report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Hilltop from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Hilltop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.50.

Hilltop Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HTH opened at $28.71 on Thursday. Hilltop has a 12-month low of $28.58 and a 12-month high of $35.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $31.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61 and a beta of 1.13.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $411.49 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $302.29 million. Hilltop had a return on equity of 4.90% and a net margin of 6.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.57 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hilltop will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

Hilltop Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilltop

In related news, CAO Keith E. Bornemann sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $80,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,124 shares in the company, valued at $291,968. The trade was a 21.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.61, for a total transaction of $1,006,051.11. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 77,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,535,362.28. This trade represents a 28.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 29.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hilltop

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Hilltop by 4.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,568,227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $82,594,000 after buying an additional 107,348 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,056,739 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,991,000 after acquiring an additional 17,477 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Hilltop by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 794,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,537,000 after acquiring an additional 19,936 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Hilltop by 2.1% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 793,868 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $24,832,000 after purchasing an additional 16,426 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in Hilltop by 90.5% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 592,138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,043,000 after purchasing an additional 281,230 shares during the period. 57.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hilltop Company Profile

Hilltop Holdings Inc provides business and consumer banking services. It operates through three segments: Banking, Broker-Dealer, and Mortgage Origination. The Banking segment offers savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, and money market accounts; certificates of deposit; lines and letters of credit, home improvement and equity loans, loans for purchasing and carrying securities, term, agricultural and commercial real estate, equipment loans, and other lending products; and mortgage, commercial and industrial loans, and term and construction finance.