Brokerages Set Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) Price Target at $34.00

Shares of Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $34.00.

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Hilltop from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hilltop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Zacks Research raised Hilltop from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hilltop in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th.

Hilltop Price Performance

NYSE:HTH opened at $32.30 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.87 and a beta of 0.91. Hilltop has a 1 year low of $26.67 and a 1 year high of $36.13. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.55.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.25. Hilltop had a return on equity of 7.18% and a net margin of 9.86%.The firm had revenue of $330.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $309.68 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Hilltop will post 1.51 EPS for the current year.

Hilltop Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.69%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Steve B. Thompson sold 6,640 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.68, for a total transaction of $216,995.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 102,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,365,974.64. The trade was a 6.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jonathan S. Sobel purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $35.36 per share, for a total transaction of $353,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman directly owned 127,429 shares in the company, valued at $4,505,889.44. The trade was a 8.52% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 60,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,022,800. 29.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hilltop in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Hilltop by 584.7% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 918 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Hilltop by 141.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 821 shares during the last quarter. SouthState Corp purchased a new stake in Hilltop in the first quarter worth $56,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Hilltop by 134.4% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.13% of the company’s stock.

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.