Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Raised to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

HTH has been the subject of several other research reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Hilltop from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Hilltop from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hilltop in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.50.

Hilltop Trading Down 0.4%

HTH opened at $34.74 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.99. Hilltop has a 1-year low of $27.35 and a 1-year high of $40.41. The stock has a market cap of $2.07 billion, a PE ratio of 13.11 and a beta of 0.92.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $217.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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. Equities analysts forecast that Hilltop will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hilltop news, CEO Steve B. Thompson sold 9,025 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.84, for a total transaction of $359,556.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 91,817 shares in the company, valued at $3,657,989.28. This represents a 8.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Gerald J. Ford sold 259,771 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.98, for a total transaction of $9,866,102.58. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,867 shares in the company, valued at $298,788.66. This represents a 97.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 294,796 shares of company stock valued at $11,225,619. 29.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hilltop

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hilltop during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Hilltop by 37.3% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in shares of Hilltop during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. 57.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Hilltop

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.