HBK Investments L P Purchases Shares of 16,484 Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF)

HBK Investments L P bought a new position in shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 16,484 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $935,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the 2nd quarter valued at $46,626,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 2,309.0% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 710,923 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,601,000 after acquiring an additional 681,412 shares during the period. Slotnik Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Heartland Financial USA in the 2nd quarter valued at $13,714,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 2nd quarter worth $10,601,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in Heartland Financial USA during the 3rd quarter worth $11,404,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.55% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Financial USA Price Performance

Heartland Financial USA stock opened at $67.72 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.83 and a beta of 0.94. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. has a one year low of $29.67 and a one year high of $70.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $60.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. The firm had revenue of $272.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.51 million. Heartland Financial USA had a net margin of 8.79% and a return on equity of 10.81%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Heartland Financial USA, Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. Heartland Financial USA’s payout ratio is 67.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on Heartland Financial USA in a research note on Sunday, November 24th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Heartland Financial USA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Heartland Financial USA

In related news, Director John K. Schmidt sold 22,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total transaction of $1,537,200.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 60,541 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,136,161.12. This trade represents a 27.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total transaction of $29,047.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,060 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,274.40. This trade represents a 28.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Heartland Financial USA Profile

Heartland Financial USA, Inc, a bank holding company, provides commercial, small business, and consumer banking services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, including checking, demand deposit accounts, NOW accounts, savings, money market, and individual retirement; certificates of deposit; and other time deposits.