Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Sets New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) shares hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $27.78 and last traded at $28.00, with a volume of 16286 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Hilltop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Hilltop from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Raymond James lowered Hilltop from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hilltop currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.50.

Hilltop Stock Up 0.1 %

The business’s fifty day moving average is $30.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.47. The stock has a market cap of $1.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.07 and a beta of 1.15.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $411.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $302.29 million. Hilltop had a net margin of 6.65% and a return on equity of 4.90%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilltop Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.72%.

Insider Transactions at Hilltop

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilltop

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HTH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Hilltop by 3.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 480,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,455,000 after buying an additional 15,346 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Hilltop during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Hilltop by 1.7% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 112.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 106,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,428,000 after purchasing an additional 56,537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in shares of Hilltop by 53.1% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 70,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,280,000 after purchasing an additional 24,591 shares during the last quarter. 57.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hilltop

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.