StockNews.com Begins Coverage on Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF)

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) in a report released on Wednesday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the bank’s stock.

Heartland Financial USA Price Performance

HTLF stock opened at $64.67 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.13 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $63.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.75. 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 has a 52-week low of $32.03 and a 52-week high of $70.27.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 14th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. Heartland Financial USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.04%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jennifer K. Hopkins sold 5,811 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total transaction of $392,591.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,963 shares in the company, valued at $470,420.28. The trade was a 45.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Financial USA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Heartland Financial USA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $125,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 2,193.4% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,775 shares of the bank’s stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 2,654 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Heartland Financial USA in the 3rd quarter valued at $11,404,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Heartland Financial USA by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 23,744 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,330,000 after purchasing an additional 2,612 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Heartland Financial USA by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 30,978 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,756,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.55% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Financial USA Company 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.