HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Shares of HBT Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBT - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $27.00 and last traded at $27.00, with a volume of 500 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.88.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HBT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of HBT Financial from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. DA Davidson lowered HBT Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $26.00 to $24.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $24.40.

HBT Financial Trading Up 1.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $22.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $766.91 million, a PE ratio of 11.05 and a beta of 0.86.

HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.03. HBT Financial had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 24.68%. The firm had revenue of $56.44 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $57.05 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that HBT Financial, Inc. will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

HBT Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. HBT Financial's payout ratio is 34.55%.

Insider Activity at HBT Financial

In other HBT Financial news, Chairman Fred L. Drake sold 4,798 shares of HBT Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.92, for a total transaction of $114,768.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 86,672 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,073,194.24. The trade was a 5.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 59.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HBT Financial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in HBT Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $6,497,000. Rosenthal Henry Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of HBT Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $930,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in HBT Financial by 6.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 406,456 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,298,000 after purchasing an additional 26,135 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management grew its stake in HBT Financial by 1,082.5% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 113,808 shares of the company's stock worth $2,324,000 after buying an additional 104,184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of HBT Financial by 3.8% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 14,605 shares of the company's stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the period. 78.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

HBT Financial Company Profile

HBT Financial, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company that provides business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal entities in Central and Northeastern Illinois, and Eastern Iowa. The company's deposits accounts consist of noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposits, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts.