Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $3.98 Million in Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 138,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,978,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of Hilltop as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Hilltop by 36.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,296 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Hilltop during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Hilltop in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Hilltop by 64.0% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,621 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Hilltop by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 13,982 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.13% of the company's stock.

Hilltop Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of HTH traded down $0.57 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $30.45. The stock had a trading volume of 175,884 shares, compared to its average volume of 327,070. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.92. The firm has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.50 and a beta of 1.14. Hilltop Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.67 and a fifty-two week high of $35.32.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.27. Hilltop had a net margin of 7.04% and a return on equity of 5.18%. On average, analysts expect that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilltop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This is an increase from Hilltop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. Hilltop's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HTH has been the subject of several recent research reports. Raymond James lowered shares of Hilltop from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Hilltop from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

About Hilltop

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.