Verition Fund Management LLC Boosts Stake in Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH)

Verition Fund Management LLC raised its holdings in Hilltop Holdings Inc. (NYSE:HTH - Free Report) by 419.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 383,692 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 309,858 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC owned about 0.59% of Hilltop worth $12,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in HTH. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Hilltop in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hilltop in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $69,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Hilltop by 36.7% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Hilltop in the third quarter worth $185,000. Finally, Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Hilltop in the third quarter worth $203,000. 57.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Hilltop

In other news, CEO Martin Bradley Winges sold 30,851 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 $2,535,362.28. This trade represents a 28.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Keith E. Bornemann sold 2,500 shares of Hilltop stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $80,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at $291,968. This represents a 21.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 29.30% of the company's stock.

Hilltop Stock Performance

Shares of HTH traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $31.65. The company had a trading volume of 124,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 326,762. Hilltop Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.58 and a 52 week high of $35.66. The company has a market capitalization of $2.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.42 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $31.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.55.

Hilltop (NYSE:HTH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.09. The business 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 company posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hilltop Holdings Inc. will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hilltop Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Hilltop's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hilltop from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.50.

Hilltop 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.