HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Shares of HBT Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBT) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $33.12 and last traded at $33.1350, with a volume of 30833 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.23.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on HBT shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded HBT Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Zacks Research downgraded HBT Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on HBT Financial from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings cut HBT Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on HBT Financial from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.25.

HBT Financial Stock Down 1.9%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $30.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.03 and a beta of 0.51.

HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $67.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $66.75 million. HBT Financial had a return on equity of 13.06% and a net margin of 22.72%. As a group, research analysts expect that HBT Financial, Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

HBT Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. HBT Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HBT Financial news, Chairman Fred L. Drake sold 15,742 shares of HBT Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.93, for a total value of $455,416.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 45,815 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,427.95. The trade was a 25.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 51.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HBT Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in HBT Financial by 17.4% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 15,554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 2,307 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of HBT Financial during the 1st quarter worth $286,000. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in shares of HBT Financial in the second quarter worth $208,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of HBT Financial by 6.0% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 20,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in HBT Financial in the second quarter valued at about $297,000. 78.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About HBT Financial

HBT Financial, Inc is the bank holding company for HomeTrust Bank, a community-focused financial institution based in Lenoir, North Carolina. Through its subsidiary, HomeTrust Bank, the company provides a full suite of personal and business banking services across western North Carolina, eastern Tennessee and Upstate South Carolina. The company’s operations include a network of branch offices, ATMs and online banking platforms designed to serve both urban and rural communities in its primary market areas.

HomeTrust Bank’s product offerings encompass traditional deposit accounts such as checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.