Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Purchases 90,003 Shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Key Points

• Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its holdings in Wintrust Financial Corporation by 27.7%, acquiring an additional 90,003 shares, reaching a total ownership of approximately 415,498 shares valued at $46.7 million.
• Wintrust Financial's stock price has been positively rated by analysts, with Piper Sandler setting an upgraded target price of $160.00 and a consensus target price of $145.77.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, with an annual yield of 1.6%, indicating strong earnings growth after reporting $2.78 earnings per share, above analysts' expectations.

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC - Free Report) by 27.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 415,498 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 90,003 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned 0.62% of Wintrust Financial worth $46,727,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wintrust Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $297,000. Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in Wintrust Financial by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 19,055 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,143,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Argent Trust Co bought a new position in Wintrust Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $229,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in Wintrust Financial by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,015 shares of the bank's stock valued at $789,000 after purchasing an additional 1,622 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its position in Wintrust Financial by 101.6% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 40,299 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,532,000 after purchasing an additional 20,314 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on WTFC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Wintrust Financial from $137.00 to $158.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stephens cut their price objective on Wintrust Financial from $145.00 to $132.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $160.00 price objective (up previously from $141.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Wintrust Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Wintrust Financial from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wintrust Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $145.77.

Insider Transactions at Wintrust Financial

In other Wintrust Financial news, insider Edward J. Wehmer bought 3,919 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $26.35 per share, with a total value of $103,265.65. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 3,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,265.65. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO David A. Dykstra sold 14,942 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.53, for a total value of $1,965,321.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 182,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,965,818.24. This trade represents a 7.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.01% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wintrust Financial Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of Wintrust Financial stock traded up $1.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $123.84. 215,696 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 463,807. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $89.10 and a twelve month high of $142.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $126.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $120.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72 and a beta of 0.85.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The bank reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.19. Wintrust Financial had a return on equity of 12.08% and a net margin of 18.06%. The firm had revenue of $670.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $661.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 10.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 7th. Wintrust Financial's payout ratio is presently 18.92%.

About Wintrust Financial

Wintrust Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company. It operates in three segments: Community Banking, Specialty Finance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banking segment offers non-interest bearing deposits, non-brokered interest-bearing transaction accounts, and savings and domestic time deposits; home equity, consumer, and real estate loans; safe deposit facilities; and automatic teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, and other services.