Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Shares Sold by Accredited Investors Inc.

Accredited Investors Inc. lessened its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) by 13.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 19,484 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 3,114 shares during the quarter. Accredited Investors Inc.’s holdings in Heartland Financial USA were worth $866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTLF. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 8.5% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 7,600 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 598 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Choreo LLC grew its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 8.6% in the first quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 9,211 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 19,032 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $716,000 after purchasing an additional 998 shares during the period. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.55% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Financial USA Trading Up 1.5 %

HTLF stock traded up $0.80 during trading on Monday, reaching $53.09. 122,604 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 319,973. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $47.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.77. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.44 and a 1 year high of $56.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.50 and a beta of 0.96.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The bank reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $188.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.19 million. Heartland Financial USA had a net margin of 7.12% and a return on equity of 11.29%. Heartland Financial USA’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Heartland Financial USA, Inc. will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Heartland Financial USA Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 13th. Heartland Financial USA’s payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert B. Engel sold 5,928 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.20, for a total transaction of $149,385.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,200. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Heartland Financial USA news, Director Robert B. Engel sold 5,928 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.20, for a total transaction of $149,385.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $277,200. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lo B. Nestman sold 4,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total transaction of $220,064.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,318 shares of company stock valued at $369,475 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on HTLF shares. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Heartland Financial USA from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Heartland Financial USA from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $51.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Heartland Financial USA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.60.

Heartland Financial USA Company Profile

Heartland Financial USA, Inc, a bank holding company, provides commercial, small business, and consumer banking services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, demand deposit accounts, NOW accounts, savings, money market, and individual retirement; certificates of deposit; and other time deposits.