Zacks Research Issues Negative Outlook for Hilltop Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research lowered Hilltop’s Q3 2026 EPS estimate to $0.58 from $0.61 and forecasts FY2026 earnings of $2.42 per share, below the current full-year consensus estimate of $2.51.
• Hilltop recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting $0.63 EPS versus the $0.49 consensus and revenue of $315.81 million versus $306.18 million expected.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.22 per share, equivalent to an annualized $0.88 payout and a 2.2% yield; analysts’ overall consensus remains “Moderate Buy” with a $40 price target.

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q3 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Hilltop in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $0.58 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.61. Zacks Research currently has a "Strong-Buy" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Hilltop's current full-year earnings is $2.51 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hilltop's Q4 2026 earnings at $0.57 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $2.42 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $0.45 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $0.49 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $0.67 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $0.76 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $2.38 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $0.49 EPS and Q2 2028 earnings at $0.57 EPS.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on HTH. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Hilltop from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Hilltop from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Hilltop in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Hilltop from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.00.

Hilltop Stock Up 0.9%

HTH stock opened at $39.73 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72 and a beta of 0.89. Hilltop has a twelve month low of $30.78 and a twelve month high of $40.41. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $38.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.72.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.14. Hilltop had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 10.17%.The business had revenue of $315.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $306.18 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.57 EPS.

Hilltop Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from Hilltop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Hilltop's payout ratio is currently 32.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Rhodes R. Bobbitt sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.12, for a total transaction of $802,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 56,096 shares in the company, valued at $2,250,571.52. This represents a 26.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,555 shares of company stock worth $2,062,214. Company insiders own 5.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilltop

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Hilltop by 156.7% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 81,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,772,000 after purchasing an additional 49,859 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hilltop by 39.8% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 286,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,247,000 after purchasing an additional 81,448 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hilltop by 43.3% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 165,263 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,920,000 after purchasing an additional 49,900 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 53.5% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 84,304 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,020,000 after purchasing an additional 29,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Hilltop by 6.2% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 265,731 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,518,000 after buying an additional 15,503 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.13% of the company's stock.

Key Hilltop News

Here are the key news stories impacting Hilltop this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised its FY2026 EPS forecast to $2.42 from $2.18, a meaningful improvement that suggests stronger expected profitability for the financial services provider.
• Positive Sentiment: The firm increased its FY2027 EPS estimate slightly to $2.38 from $2.37, lifted Q4 2026 expectations to $0.57 from $0.56, and raised Q4 2027 expectations substantially to $0.76 from $0.66.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks also increased its Q1 2028 EPS forecast to $0.49 from $0.43, indicating some confidence in Hilltop’s longer-term earnings trajectory.
• Neutral Sentiment: The revisions leave Zacks’ projected FY2027 EPS of $2.38 below the current-year consensus estimate of $2.51, suggesting growth may remain uneven. The estimates are analyst projections rather than updated company guidance.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks lowered several intermediate-term forecasts, including Q3 2026 EPS to $0.58 from $0.61, Q1 2027 EPS to $0.45 from $0.50, Q2 2027 EPS to $0.49 from $0.51, Q3 2027 EPS to $0.67 from $0.71, and Q2 2028 EPS to $0.57 from $0.59.

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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