Principal Financial Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Wintrust Financial Corporation $WTFC

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group trimmed its Wintrust Financial stake slightly in the first quarter, selling 7,057 shares and still holding about 1.88% of the bank worth roughly $175.9 million.
• Wintrust Financial has drawn mostly positive analyst attention, with multiple firms raising or reaffirming bullish ratings and a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”; the average price target is $174.92.
• The bank recently reported strong quarterly results, including EPS of $3.22 versus expectations of $2.96 and revenue that topped estimates, while shares traded near their 52-week high at $162.36.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC - Free Report) by 0.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,265,800 shares of the bank's stock after selling 7,057 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 1.88% of Wintrust Financial worth $175,872,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Wintrust Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Wintrust Financial by 231.9% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 229 shares of the bank's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 72.7% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 240 shares of the bank's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strive Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. 93.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $160.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $188.00 price objective (up from $184.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Wintrust Financial from $178.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Wintrust Financial from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.92.

Wintrust Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WTFC opened at $162.36 on Wednesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $154.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.44. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $119.61 and a 52-week high of $164.00. The firm has a market cap of $10.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The bank reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.96 by $0.26. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 20.11% and a return on equity of 13.15%. The firm had revenue of $713.17 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $707.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.69 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 13.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Wintrust Financial

In related news, Director Suzet M. Mckinney sold 500 shares of Wintrust Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.96, for a total value of $74,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,303 shares in the company, valued at approximately $492,014.88. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,213 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,987,895.85. This represents a 18.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,099 shares of company stock valued at $1,954,386. Insiders own 1.24% of the company's stock.

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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