Jane Street Group LLC Cuts Position in Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF)

Jane Street Group LLC reduced its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) by 39.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 56,625 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 36,613 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC’s holdings in Heartland Financial USA were worth $3,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HTLF. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in Heartland Financial USA by 33.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 27,999 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,588,000 after acquiring an additional 6,960 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA during the third quarter worth about $225,000. Slotnik Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 14.6% during the third quarter. Slotnik Capital LLC now owns 353,534 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,045,000 after purchasing an additional 45,000 shares in the last quarter. Westchester Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 260.1% in the third quarter. Westchester Capital Management LLC now owns 582,880 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,049,000 after purchasing an additional 421,000 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 9.3% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 14,576 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $826,000 after purchasing an additional 1,240 shares in the last quarter. 71.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Heartland Financial USA

In related news, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total value of $29,047.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,274.40. This represents a 28.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John K. Schmidt sold 22,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total transaction of $1,537,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 60,541 shares in the company, valued at $4,136,161.12. This represents a 27.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,743 shares of company stock valued at $1,958,839 over the last quarter. 1.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Heartland Financial USA Stock Performance

Shares of HTLF opened at $62.31 on Friday. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.03 and a 1 year high of $70.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a PE ratio of 34.81 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.33.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. Heartland Financial USA had a net margin of 8.79% and a return on equity of 10.81%. The company had revenue of $272.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Heartland Financial USA, Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. Heartland Financial USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.60.

About Heartland Financial USA

Heartland Financial USA, Inc, a bank holding company, provides commercial, small business, and consumer banking services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, demand deposit accounts, NOW accounts, savings, money market, and individual retirement; certificates of deposit; and other time deposits.