Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Buys New Stake in HBT Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBT)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of HBT Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 98,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,198,000. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. owned about 0.31% of HBT Financial at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in HBT Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $264,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of HBT Financial by 4,457.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,689 shares of the company's stock valued at $600,000 after purchasing an additional 2,630 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in shares of HBT Financial by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 37,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $810,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of HBT Financial by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 35,062 shares of the company's stock worth $768,000 after purchasing an additional 3,227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in HBT Financial by 65.9% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 43,126 shares of the company's stock worth $944,000 after buying an additional 17,130 shares during the period. 78.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HBT Financial Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of HBT traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $24.75. 34,975 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 33,356. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $779.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.40 and a beta of 0.58. HBT Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.74 and a 1 year high of $26.25. The firm's fifty day moving average is $23.59 and its 200-day moving average is $23.27.

HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.57 million. HBT Financial had a net margin of 25.88% and a return on equity of 14.13%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that HBT Financial, Inc. will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current year.

HBT Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. HBT Financial's payout ratio is presently 35.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Hovde Group raised HBT Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $28.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $25.80.

HBT Financial Company Profile

HBT Financial, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company that provides business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal entities in Central and Northeastern Illinois, and Eastern Iowa. The company's deposits accounts consist of noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposits, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts.