Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Issues Positive Forecast for Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Stock Price

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) had its target price hoisted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $34.00 to $39.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on HTH. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Hilltop from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hilltop in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Hilltop from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.50.

Hilltop Trading Up 1.7%

HTH stock opened at $38.59 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $35.18 and its 200 day moving average is $33.73. The stock has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.94. Hilltop has a 1-year low of $27.35 and a 1-year high of $39.12.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $217.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $300.15 million. Hilltop had a net margin of 10.19% and a return on equity of 7.47%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hilltop will post 1.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilltop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. This is a positive change from Hilltop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.17%.

Insider Activity at Hilltop

In other news, CAO Keith E. Bornemann sold 2,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $77,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 8,692 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,220. The trade was a 20.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 29.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilltop

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Hilltop by 0.8% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 870,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,419,000 after purchasing an additional 7,302 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hilltop by 32.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 796,277 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,247,000 after buying an additional 192,991 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Hilltop by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 762,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,477,000 after buying an additional 27,203 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Hilltop by 37.5% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 711,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,788,000 after buying an additional 194,287 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Hilltop by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 647,003 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,623,000 after acquiring an additional 192,439 shares during the last quarter. 57.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hilltop Company Profile

Hilltop Holdings, Inc (NYSE: HTH) is a Dallas, Texas–based financial holding company offering commercial banking, mortgage lending and capital markets services through its three primary subsidiaries: PlainsCapital Corporation, PrimeLending and HilltopSecurities. PlainsCapital provides deposit, lending and treasury management solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and individuals. PrimeLending specializes in home purchase and refinance loans, serving retail, wholesale and correspondent channels.