Horizon Investments LLC Purchases 14,776 Shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation $WTFC

Key Points

• Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in Wintrust Financial by 79.8%, buying an additional 14,776 shares to hold 33,287 shares valued at about $4.65 million at quarter end.
• Company insiders executed notable sales — CFO David Stoehr sold 3,020 shares at ~$150.45 and COO David Dykstra sold 9,579 shares at ~$148.82 — leaving insiders with just 1.24% ownership while institutions hold ~93.48%.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average target of $168.92 (stock recently around $149.57), and Wintrust declared a $0.55 quarterly dividend ($2.20 annual, ~1.5% yield) with an ex-dividend date of May 14.

Horizon Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC - Free Report) by 79.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 33,287 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 14,776 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investments LLC's holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $4,654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Wintrust Financial by 75.3% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 312 shares of the bank's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 93.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 3,020 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.45, for a total value of $454,359.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,213 shares in the company, valued at $1,987,895.85. The trade was a 18.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO David A. Dykstra sold 9,579 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 179,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,759,324.20. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stephens assumed coverage on Wintrust Financial in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on Wintrust Financial from $178.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Wintrust Financial from $170.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $188.00 price target (up from $184.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $168.92.

Wintrust Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WTFC opened at $149.57 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business's 50 day moving average price is $142.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $140.70. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a 52 week low of $113.39 and a 52 week high of $162.96. The stock has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.54 and a beta of 0.86.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 20.11% and a return on equity of 13.15%. The company had revenue of $713.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $707.23 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. Wintrust Financial's payout ratio is presently 18.44%.

Wintrust Financial Profile

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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