Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Major Shareholder Sells $9,866,102.58 in Stock

Key Points

• Major shareholder Gerald Ford sold 259,771 shares of Hilltop at an average $37.98 for a total of $9,866,102.58, leaving him with 7,867 shares — a 97.06% reduction in his stake.
• Hilltop beat EPS estimates with $0.69 per share versus $0.46 expected but missed on revenue ($217.4M vs. $300.15M), and the stock carries a consensus "Hold" rating with an average price target of $37.50.
• Hilltop raised its quarterly dividend to $0.20 (annualized $0.80), yielding about 2.2% with a payout ratio near 30%.

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) major shareholder Gerald Ford sold 259,771 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.98, for a total value of $9,866,102.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,867 shares in the company, valued at $298,788.66. This represents a 97.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company's shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Hilltop Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of HTH traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $36.74. The company had a trading volume of 373,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 380,608. The company has a market capitalization of $2.18 billion, a PE ratio of 13.87 and a beta of 0.92. Hilltop Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $27.35 and a one year high of $40.41. The company's fifty day moving average price is $37.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.98.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $217.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $300.15 million. Hilltop had a return on equity of 7.47% and a net margin of 10.19%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Hilltop Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This is an increase from Hilltop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Hilltop's payout ratio is presently 30.19%.

Institutional Trading of Hilltop

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,566 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Hilltop by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,919 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $540,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Hilltop by 37.3% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,153 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its stake in Hilltop by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 37,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,275,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Hilltop by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,334 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.13% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Hilltop from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Zacks Research lowered Hilltop from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Wall Street Zen cut Hilltop from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Hilltop in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $37.50.

Hilltop Company Profile

Hilltop Holdings, Inc NYSE: HTH is a Dallas, Texas–based financial holding company offering commercial banking, mortgage lending and capital markets services through its three primary subsidiaries: PlainsCapital Corporation, PrimeLending and HilltopSecurities. PlainsCapital provides deposit, lending and treasury management solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and individuals. PrimeLending specializes in home purchase and refinance loans, serving retail, wholesale and correspondent channels.

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