Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Short Interest Down 12.1% in December

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 632,300 shares, a decline of 12.1% from the December 15th total of 719,600 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 212,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Heartland Financial USA Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:HTLF traded up $1.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $65.78. 139,802 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 178,616. Heartland Financial USA has a 1-year low of $32.03 and a 1-year high of $70.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $64.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.75 and a beta of 0.98.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17. Heartland Financial USA had a net margin of 8.79% and a return on equity of 10.81%. The business had revenue of $272.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.51 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Heartland Financial USA will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Heartland Financial USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Heartland Financial USA news, Director Jennifer K. Hopkins sold 5,811 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $392,591.16. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,963 shares in the company, valued at $470,420.28. This represents a 45.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total value of $29,047.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,060 shares in the company, valued at $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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 28,743 shares of company stock valued at $1,958,839. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heartland Financial USA

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in Heartland Financial USA by 2.1% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,657,168 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $118,111,000 after purchasing an additional 54,030 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 8.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,384,697 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $105,999,000 after acquiring an additional 182,245 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 3.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,456,428 shares of the bank’s stock worth $82,579,000 after purchasing an additional 53,755 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,626,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 4.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,023,370 shares of the bank’s stock worth $58,036,000 after purchasing an additional 47,480 shares during the period. 71.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on Heartland Financial USA in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Heartland Financial USA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.60.

About Heartland Financial USA

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.