Comerica Bank Sells 27,628 Shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation $WTFC

Key Points

• Comerica Bank trimmed its Wintrust stake by 43.9%, selling 27,628 shares and leaving it with 35,279 shares (about 0.05% of the company) valued at roughly $4.93 million.
• Wintrust beat expectations for the quarter with EPS of $3.22 vs. $2.96 estimated and revenue of $713.17M (up 10.9% YoY); analysts’ consensus is a Moderate Buy with a $168.92 target.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.55 (annualized $2.20, yield 1.5%), while insiders — including the CFO and COO — recently sold shares, leaving insiders with about 1.24% ownership.

Comerica Bank decreased its position in Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC - Free Report) by 43.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 35,279 shares of the bank's stock after selling 27,628 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank owned approximately 0.05% of Wintrust Financial worth $4,933,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,992,906 shares of the bank's stock worth $263,940,000 after acquiring an additional 102,833 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,442,018 shares of the bank's stock worth $190,981,000 after acquiring an additional 8,048 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,300,234 shares of the bank's stock worth $172,204,000 after acquiring an additional 75,155 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,071,763 shares of the bank's stock worth $141,944,000 after acquiring an additional 15,044 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,020,660 shares of the bank's stock worth $135,176,000 after acquiring an additional 83,826 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on WTFC shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Wintrust Financial from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Wintrust Financial from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $176.00 target price on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Stephens began coverage on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Friday, March 27th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Wintrust Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $168.92.

Insider Transactions at Wintrust Financial

In related news, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 3,020 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.45, for a total value of $454,359.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,213 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,987,895.85. The trade was a 18.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO David A. Dykstra sold 9,579 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.82, for a total transaction of $1,425,546.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 179,810 shares in the company, valued at $26,759,324.20. This trade represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wintrust Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WTFC opened at $149.57 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average is $142.23 and its 200 day moving average is $140.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $10.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.54 and a beta of 0.86. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $113.39 and a fifty-two week high of $162.96.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The bank reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.96 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $713.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $707.23 million. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 20.11% and a return on equity of 13.15%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Wintrust Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. Wintrust Financial's payout ratio is 18.44%.

About Wintrust Financial

Wintrust Financial Corporation is a Chicago‐area bank holding company headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois. Through its primary subsidiary, Wintrust Bank, the company operates a network of community banks serving metropolitan Chicago and select markets in southeastern Wisconsin. These locally branded banks provide personalized commercial and consumer banking solutions tailored to small and mid‐size businesses, professionals, and individual clients.

The firm's core offerings include deposit products, commercial and residential lending, treasury management, and mortgage banking services.

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