Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK) has been downgraded from a "hold" to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting a shift in analyst sentiment.
• The company's shares opened at $9.58 and recently experienced a decline of 3.1%, with a 52-week range between $8.09 and $11.27.
• Institutional investors currently hold 75.55% of Heritage Commerce's stock, with significant increases in holdings from Wellington Management and other firms in the first quarter.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on HTBK. Raymond James Financial set a $10.00 price objective on shares of Heritage Commerce in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $11.00 price target on shares of Heritage Commerce in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Heritage Commerce from $11.50 to $11.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th.

Heritage Commerce Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ HTBK traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $9.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 519,404 shares, compared to its average volume of 483,109. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $9.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. Heritage Commerce has a 1 year low of $8.09 and a 1 year high of $11.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $593.21 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.29 and a beta of 0.81.

Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $47.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $47.17 million. Heritage Commerce had a net margin of 15.00% and a return on equity of 6.62%. On average, equities analysts predict that Heritage Commerce will post 0.8 EPS for the current year.

Heritage Commerce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 7th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.40%. Heritage Commerce's payout ratio is 82.54%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heritage Commerce

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Heritage Commerce by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,920 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 38,379 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $360,000 after buying an additional 1,297 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 1.7% in the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 90,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $859,000 after buying an additional 1,484 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 143.5% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,851 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,680 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 66.7% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,789 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 2,316 shares during the period. 75.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heritage Commerce Company Profile

Heritage Commerce Corp operates as the bank holding company for Heritage Bank of Commerce that provides various commercial and personal banking services to residents and the business/professional community in California. Its deposit products for business banking and retail markets include interest and non-interest-bearing demand, savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and time deposits.