Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Buy” by the five research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $45.60.

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA in a report on Friday, January 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

Heartland Financial USA Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of HTLF stock opened at $66.23 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.00 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Heartland Financial USA has a 52 week low of $32.03 and a 52 week high of $70.27.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. Heartland Financial USA had a return on equity of 10.81% and a net margin of 8.79%. The company had revenue of $272.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.51 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Heartland Financial USA will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Financial USA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Heartland Financial USA’s payout ratio is presently 67.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Heartland Financial USA news, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total transaction of $29,047.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,060 shares in the company, valued at $71,274.40. The trade was a 28.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jennifer K. Hopkins sold 5,811 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $392,591.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,963 shares in the company, valued at approximately $470,420.28. The trade was a 45.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 28,743 shares of company stock valued at $1,958,839 over the last three months. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Heartland Financial USA

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC grew its stake in Heartland Financial USA by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 8,702 shares of the bank’s stock worth $533,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 4th quarter valued at $294,000. USA Financial Formulas grew its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 90.4% during the 4th quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 2,018 shares of the bank’s stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 958 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 8.0% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 28,679 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,626,000 after acquiring an additional 2,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new position in Heartland Financial USA during the 3rd quarter worth about $303,000. 71.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Heartland Financial USA

Heartland Financial USA, Inc, a bank holding company, provides commercial, small business, and consumer banking services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, demand deposit accounts, NOW accounts, savings, money market, and individual retirement; certificates of deposit; and other time deposits.