Lazard Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its position in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC - Free Report) by 25.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 123,295 shares of the bank's stock after selling 41,583 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.19% of Wintrust Financial worth $15,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Wintrust Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,002,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial by 33.7% in the 4th quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 63,172 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,878,000 after buying an additional 15,930 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 9,319 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,162,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 15,790 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,969,000 after buying an additional 2,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Wintrust Financial in the 4th quarter worth $1,076,000. 93.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WTFC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Wintrust Financial from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Wintrust Financial from $152.00 to $135.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Raymond James set a $143.00 price target on shares of Wintrust Financial and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Wintrust Financial from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Wintrust Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $133.54.

Wintrust Financial Trading Up 0.0%

Wintrust Financial stock traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $122.30. The stock had a trading volume of 398,977 shares, compared to its average volume of 424,238. The stock has a market cap of $8.19 billion, a PE ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 0.81. Wintrust Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $89.10 and a 52 week high of $142.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.98.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $643.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $643.11 million. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 17.52% and a return on equity of 12.60%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.89 EPS. Analysts forecast that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 10.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. Wintrust Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.78%.

About Wintrust Financial

Wintrust Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company. It operates in three segments: Community Banking, Specialty Finance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banking segment offers non-interest bearing deposits, non-brokered interest-bearing transaction accounts, and savings and domestic time deposits; home equity, consumer, and real estate loans; safe deposit facilities; and automatic teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, and other services.