Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Shares Up 4% on Strong Earnings

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) shot up 4% on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $30.45 and last traded at $30.21. 56,994 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 304,096 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.05.

The financial services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $285.24 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $274.55 million. Hilltop had a net margin of 6.95% and a return on equity of 5.27%. Hilltop’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share.

Hilltop Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Hilltop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James raised Hilltop from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 5th. TheStreet cut Hilltop from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hilltop

In other Hilltop news, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,000 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.83, for a total transaction of $924,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,050,135.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Hilltop news, Director Hill A. Feinberg sold 3,000 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.63, for a total transaction of $94,890.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $435,734.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,000 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.83, for a total value of $924,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,050,135.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 28.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 1.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,551,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $192,605,000 after buying an additional 109,157 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 8.9% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,571,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $105,004,000 after buying an additional 291,456 shares during the last quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 46.9% in the third quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 2,525,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $71,609,000 after buying an additional 806,091 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 0.6% in the first quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,567,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,077,000 after buying an additional 8,634 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 2.9% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 904,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,826,000 after buying an additional 25,268 shares during the last quarter. 57.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hilltop Stock Up 3.2 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $30.54 and a 200-day moving average of $30.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.54 and a beta of 1.12.

Hilltop Company Profile

Hilltop Holdings Inc provides business and consumer banking services. It operates through three segments: Banking, Broker-Dealer, and Mortgage Origination. The Banking segment offers savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, and money market accounts; certificates of deposit; lines and letters of credit, home improvement and equity loans, loans for purchasing and carrying securities, term, agricultural and commercial real estate, equipment loans, and other lending products; and mortgage, commercial and industrial loans, and term and construction finance.