StockNews.com Downgrades Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) to Sell

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Several other research firms have also commented on HTH. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Hilltop from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Hilltop from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.50.

Hilltop Stock Performance

Shares of Hilltop stock opened at $31.18 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.23 and a beta of 1.13. Hilltop has a one year low of $26.78 and a one year high of $35.66. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $31.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.19.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $297.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $283.22 million. Hilltop had a return on equity of 5.30% and a net margin of 7.10%. Hilltop’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hilltop will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hilltop

In related news, Director Hill A. Feinberg sold 17,157 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.99, for a total transaction of $566,009.43. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 544,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,978,857.21. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 28.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilltop

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,393,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $168,918,000 after purchasing an additional 153,697 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Hilltop by 2.1% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 793,868 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $24,832,000 after buying an additional 16,426 shares during the last quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 472,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,767,000 after acquiring an additional 12,106 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in Hilltop by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 315,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,872,000 after buying an additional 21,771 shares during the period. Finally, Scout Investments Inc. lifted its position in Hilltop by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Scout Investments Inc. now owns 193,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,821,000 after purchasing an additional 5,765 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.13% of the company’s stock.

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.