Greenleaf Trust Buys 3,098 Shares of Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Greenleaf Trust lifted its stake in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC - Free Report) by 112.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,848 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 3,098 shares during the quarter. Greenleaf Trust's holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $729,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 62.0% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 512 shares of the bank's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Wintrust Financial by 32.1% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 539 shares of the bank's stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Wintrust Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Wintrust Financial by 77.9% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 653 shares of the bank's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.48% of the company's stock.

Wintrust Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:WTFC traded down $1.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $130.04. 293,406 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 470,316. The firm has a market cap of $8.65 billion, a PE ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 1.19. The stock's 50-day moving average is $130.07 and its 200-day moving average is $118.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Wintrust Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $90.29 and a twelve month high of $142.04.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.11. Wintrust Financial had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 17.52%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.87 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 10.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 6th. This is a positive change from Wintrust Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. Wintrust Financial's payout ratio is presently 19.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WTFC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Wintrust Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Wintrust Financial from $126.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group assumed coverage on Wintrust Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $157.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price (up previously from $135.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $133.69.

Insider Activity at Wintrust Financial

In other Wintrust Financial news, EVP Jeffrey D. Hahnfeld sold 416 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.95, for a total value of $54,475.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,276 shares of the company's stock, valued at $298,042.20. This represents a 15.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Richard B. Murphy sold 3,186 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.30, for a total transaction of $418,321.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 48,814 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,409,278.20. The trade was a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,178 shares of company stock valued at $1,336,315. Corporate insiders own 1.47% of the company's stock.

Wintrust Financial Profile

Wintrust Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company. It operates in three segments: Community Banking, Specialty Finance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banking segment offers non-interest bearing deposits, non-brokered interest-bearing transaction accounts, and savings and domestic time deposits; home equity, consumer, and real estate loans; safe deposit facilities; and automatic teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, and other services.