Hilltop (NYSE:HTH) Hits New 52-Week Low - Here's Why

Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $28.35 and last traded at $28.46, with a volume of 7682 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $28.89.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James downgraded Hilltop from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Hilltop from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Hilltop from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hilltop presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.50.

Hilltop Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of 17.47 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $31.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.52.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $411.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $302.29 million. Hilltop had a return on equity of 4.90% and a net margin of 6.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilltop Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. Hilltop's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hilltop news, CAO Keith E. Bornemann sold 2,500 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $80,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at $291,968. The trade was a 21.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,851 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.61, for a total transaction of $1,006,051.11. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 77,748 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,535,362.28. The trade was a 28.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 29.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hilltop

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTH. Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 61.4% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 48,393 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,556,000 after purchasing an additional 18,415 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hilltop by 53.1% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 70,905 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,280,000 after acquiring an additional 24,591 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 4.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,568,227 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $82,594,000 after acquiring an additional 107,348 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP increased its stake in shares of Hilltop by 171.4% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 34,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,100,000 after acquiring an additional 21,600 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Hilltop by 1.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,056,739 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,991,000 after purchasing an additional 17,477 shares during the period. 57.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hilltop Company Profile

Hilltop Holdings Inc provides business and consumer banking services. It operates through three segments: Banking, Broker-Dealer, and Mortgage Origination. The Banking segment offers savings, checking, interest-bearing checking, and money market accounts; certificates of deposit; lines and letters of credit, home improvement and equity loans, loans for purchasing and carrying securities, term, agricultural and commercial real estate, equipment loans, and other lending products; and mortgage, commercial and industrial loans, and term and construction finance.