Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys Shares of 232,559 Heritage Commerce Corp (NASDAQ:HTBK)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Heritage Commerce Corp (NASDAQ:HTBK - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 232,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,181,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.38% of Heritage Commerce at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTBK. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Heritage Commerce by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,302,615 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,599,000 after acquiring an additional 268,900 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in Heritage Commerce by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,564,741 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,620,000 after acquiring an additional 26,442 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Heritage Commerce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,426,816 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,386,000 after acquiring an additional 4,756 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Heritage Commerce by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,129,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,599,000 after acquiring an additional 36,821 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Heritage Commerce by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 500,637 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,696,000 after buying an additional 4,447 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.55% of the company's stock.

Heritage Commerce Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HTBK traded up $0.22 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $9.30. 276,244 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 374,515. The firm has a market capitalization of $572.98 million, a PE ratio of 14.09 and a beta of 0.81. The company's 50 day moving average price is $9.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Heritage Commerce Corp has a 12 month low of $7.74 and a 12 month high of $11.27.

Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.01. Heritage Commerce had a return on equity of 5.96% and a net margin of 16.12%. The company had revenue of $46.06 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $45.89 million. As a group, analysts predict that Heritage Commerce Corp will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heritage Commerce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. Heritage Commerce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jack W. Conner sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.52, for a total value of $42,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 108,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,141,546.24. This trade represents a 3.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robertson Clay Jones, Jr. sold 5,145 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.73, for a total transaction of $50,060.85. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 254,227 shares in the company, valued at $2,473,628.71. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,747 shares of company stock valued at $107,728. Corporate insiders own 2.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Heritage Commerce 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.