Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Has $776,000 Holdings in Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) by 25.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 22,036 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,500 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Hilltop were worth $776,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTH. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new position in Hilltop during the 3rd quarter valued at about $776,000. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 126.6% during the third quarter. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC now owns 107,522 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,049,000 after purchasing an additional 60,065 shares during the period. North Reef Capital Management LP grew its position in Hilltop by 46.9% during the third quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 2,525,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $71,609,000 after purchasing an additional 806,091 shares in the last quarter. EJF Capital LLC increased its stake in Hilltop by 38.1% in the 3rd quarter. EJF Capital LLC now owns 32,318 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 8,918 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Hilltop by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 691,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,601,000 after buying an additional 19,910 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.13% of the company’s stock.

Hilltop Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HTH opened at $28.71 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $30.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.97. Hilltop Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $26.78 and a one year high of $35.66. The company has a market capitalization of $1.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.99 and a beta of 1.12.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. Hilltop had a return on equity of 5.20% and a net margin of 7.00%. The firm had revenue of $290.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $296.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.39 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.51 EPS for the current year.

Hilltop Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. This is an increase from Hilltop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on HTH. Raymond James upgraded shares of Hilltop from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. TheStreet downgraded Hilltop from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hilltop news, Director Hill A. Feinberg sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.63, for a total transaction of $94,890.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,776 shares in the company, valued at $435,734.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Hill A. Feinberg sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.63, for a total transaction of $94,890.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $435,734.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,000 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.83, for a total transaction of $924,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,050,135.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 28.90% 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.