Blue Trust Inc. Sells 362 Shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF)

Blue Trust Inc. cut its position in Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) by 13.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,413 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 362 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Heartland Financial USA were worth $137,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HTLF. USA Financial Formulas boosted its holdings in Heartland Financial USA by 28.0% in the 3rd quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 1,060 shares of the bank’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 232 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA during the third quarter worth $125,000. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the third quarter worth $225,000. High Note Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the third quarter valued at $238,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA during the 4th quarter valued at $294,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.55% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Financial USA Stock Performance

NASDAQ HTLF opened at $64.67 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $64.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a PE ratio of 36.13 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.03 and a 1 year high of $70.27.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 14th. Heartland Financial USA’s dividend payout ratio is 67.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total transaction of $29,047.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,060 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,274.40. This trade represents a 28.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John K. Schmidt sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,136,161.12. This trade represents a 27.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 28,743 shares of company stock worth $1,958,839 over the last ninety days. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Heartland Financial USA in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

Heartland Financial USA Profile

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.