HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) Rating Increased to Outperform at Hovde Group

Hovde Group upgraded shares of HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT - Free Report) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research note released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Hovde Group currently has $28.00 target price on the stock.

Separately, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of HBT Financial from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $25.33.

HBT Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HBT traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $23.55. 18,150 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 32,563. HBT Financial has a twelve month low of $18.16 and a twelve month high of $26.25. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $22.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $741.71 million, a P/E ratio of 10.42 and a beta of 0.60.

HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.57 million. HBT Financial had a return on equity of 14.57% and a net margin of 24.99%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.57 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that HBT Financial will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HBT Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. HBT Financial's payout ratio is presently 35.29%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Fred L. Drake sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.15, for a total value of $251,500.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 22,825 shares in the company, valued at $574,048.75. This trade represents a 30.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 59.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HBT Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HBT. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its stake in HBT Financial by 47.7% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,335 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of HBT Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of HBT Financial by 4,457.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,689 shares of the company's stock worth $600,000 after buying an additional 2,630 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in HBT Financial by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,309 shares of the company's stock valued at $138,000 after buying an additional 756 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in HBT Financial by 27.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 7,522 shares of the company's stock valued at $165,000 after acquiring an additional 1,638 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.55% of the company's stock.

About HBT Financial

HBT Financial, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company that provides business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal entities in Central and Northeastern Illinois, and Eastern Iowa. The company's deposits accounts consist of noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposits, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts.