Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Shares Cross Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $36.80 and traded as high as $39.65. Hilltop shares last traded at $39.0950, with a volume of 310,406 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research raised Hilltop from a “strong sell” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen cut Hilltop from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Hilltop from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.50.

Hilltop Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $37.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.82. The company has a market cap of $2.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.89 and a beta of 0.88.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.10. Hilltop had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 7.32%. The business had revenue of $300.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $304.87 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

Hilltop Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Hilltop’s payout ratio is presently 30.30%.

Insider Activity at Hilltop

In related news, CAO Keith E. Bornemann sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total value of $76,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,912 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $300,656. This represents a 20.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Rhodes R. Bobbitt sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total transaction of $380,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 87,016 shares in the company, valued at $3,306,608. This represents a 10.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 32,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,206,000. 5.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hilltop

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HTH. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Hilltop by 236.4% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 461,206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,044,000 after purchasing an additional 324,108 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 106.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 493,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,503,000 after purchasing an additional 255,141 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Hilltop during the third quarter worth about $8,337,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 37.5% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 711,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,788,000 after buying an additional 194,287 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 32.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 796,277 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,247,000 after buying an additional 192,991 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.13% of the company’s stock.

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.