Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Heritage Commerce stock recently passed above its 200-day moving average ($11.56), trading as high as $12.61 and last at $12.41 on volume of 704,143 shares, signaling a technical breakout.
• The company beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.28 vs. $0.23), has a market cap of about $764M and a P/E of 15.9, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.13 (annualized yield ~4.2%) with a payout ratio around 66.7%.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed—MarketBeat shows an overall "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $12.25, while individual ratings range from "strong buy" to "sell."

Heritage Commerce Corp (NASDAQ:HTBK - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $11.56 and traded as high as $12.61. Heritage Commerce shares last traded at $12.41, with a volume of 704,143 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on HTBK shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Heritage Commerce from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Heritage Commerce from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $14.50 price target on shares of Heritage Commerce in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Heritage Commerce from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, December 20th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded shares of Heritage Commerce from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $12.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $12.25.

Heritage Commerce Stock Down 0.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $764.33 million, a P/E ratio of 15.91 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $12.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.56.

Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $104.04 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $50.78 million. Heritage Commerce had a return on equity of 8.07% and a net margin of 17.77%. On average, analysts predict that Heritage Commerce Corp will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Heritage Commerce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. Heritage Commerce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heritage Commerce

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its position in Heritage Commerce by 129.5% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 3,599 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 2,031 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Heritage Commerce by 56.5% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 5,026 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 1,815 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Heritage Commerce by 16,272.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,403 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 5,370 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Heritage Commerce by 495.3% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 4,676 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Heritage Commerce by 368.9% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,433 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 5,061 shares in the last quarter. 75.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heritage Commerce Company Profile

Heritage Commerce Corporation, headquartered in Farmington Hills, Michigan, is the bank holding company for Heritage Bank, N.A., a community-oriented financial institution. Traded on NASDAQ under the symbol HTBK, the company focuses on delivering tailored banking services to businesses, professionals and individuals throughout Southeastern Michigan.

Heritage Bank, N.A. offers a comprehensive portfolio of deposit and lending products designed to meet the needs of commercial and consumer clients.

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