Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC Acquires 7,400 Shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation $WTFC

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 48,217 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,400 shares during the quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $6,386,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Wintrust Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 75.3% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 312 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Wintrust Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 93.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $170.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. DA Davidson increased their price target on Wintrust Financial from $165.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $176.00 price target on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Wintrust Financial from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $165.31.

Wintrust Financial Stock Up 1.0%

WTFC stock opened at $131.54 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $147.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $138.81. The stock has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $89.10 and a twelve month high of $162.96.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The bank reported $3.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.22. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 19.48% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The company had revenue of $714.26 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $700.85 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.63 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 10.36 EPS for the current year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Wintrust Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. Wintrust Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider David Eric Lee sold 558 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.42, for a total transaction of $82,260.36. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 16,085 shares in the company, valued at $2,371,250.70. This trade represents a 3.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kathleen M. Boege sold 5,000 shares of Wintrust Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.38, for a total transaction of $731,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 22,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,349,613.54. This trade represents a 17.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,662 shares of company stock worth $1,705,730. 1.01% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wintrust Financial Company Profile

Wintrust Financial Corporation is a Chicago‐area bank holding company headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois. Through its primary subsidiary, Wintrust Bank, the company operates a network of community banks serving metropolitan Chicago and select markets in southeastern Wisconsin. These locally branded banks provide personalized commercial and consumer banking solutions tailored to small and mid‐size businesses, professionals, and individual clients.

The firm’s core offerings include deposit products, commercial and residential lending, treasury management, and mortgage banking services.