Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Sets New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) shares hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $28.35 and last traded at $28.46, with a volume of 7682 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Raymond James lowered shares of Hilltop from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Hilltop from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Hilltop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hilltop presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.50.

Hilltop Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $31.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.51. The company has a market cap of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 17.56 and a beta of 1.13.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $411.49 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $302.29 million. Hilltop had a return on equity of 4.90% and a net margin of 6.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. Analysts forecast that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

Hilltop Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilltop

In other Hilltop news, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,851 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.61, for a total value of $1,006,051.11. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 77,748 shares in the company, valued at $2,535,362.28. This represents a 28.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Keith E. Bornemann sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $80,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $291,968. The trade was a 21.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 29.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hilltop

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hilltop in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Hilltop in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Hilltop by 36.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 885 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Hilltop in the 3rd quarter valued at $185,000. Finally, Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Hilltop in the 3rd quarter valued at $203,000. 57.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.