Empowered Funds LLC Takes Position in Hilltop Holdings Inc. $HTH

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC acquired 267,064 shares of Hilltop Holdings during the second quarter, worth approximately $10.4 million and representing about 0.47% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 57.13% of Hilltop.
• Hilltop reported quarterly EPS of $0.63, exceeding estimates of $0.49, while revenue reached $315.81 million versus expectations of $306.18 million.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with a $40 target price. Hilltop also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, equivalent to a 2.3% annual yield.

Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 267,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,357,000. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.47% of Hilltop at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Hilltop during the 2nd quarter valued at about $256,179,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Hilltop in the second quarter worth approximately $13,091,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 236.4% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 461,206 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,044,000 after buying an additional 324,108 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Hilltop by 106.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 493,802 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,503,000 after acquiring an additional 255,141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in Hilltop in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $8,337,000. 57.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on HTH. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Hilltop in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Hilltop in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen cut Hilltop from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Hilltop from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Hilltop from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hilltop has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.00.

Hilltop Stock Performance

Hilltop stock opened at $38.49 on Friday. Hilltop Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $30.78 and a one year high of $40.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $38.88 and a 200 day moving average of $37.79. The stock has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.26 and a beta of 0.89.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.14. Hilltop had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 10.17%.The business had revenue of $315.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $306.18 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hilltop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. This is a positive change from Hilltop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. Hilltop's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.59%.

Insider Transactions at Hilltop

In other Hilltop news, Director Rhodes R. Bobbitt sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.80, for a total transaction of $194,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,641 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $994,870.80. This represents a 16.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 62,555 shares of company stock worth $2,467,714 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Hilltop Company Profile

Hilltop Holdings, Inc NYSE: HTH is a Dallas, Texas–based financial holding company offering commercial banking, mortgage lending and capital markets services through its three primary subsidiaries: PlainsCapital Corporation, PrimeLending and HilltopSecurities. PlainsCapital provides deposit, lending and treasury management solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and individuals. PrimeLending specializes in home purchase and refinance loans, serving retail, wholesale and correspondent channels.

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