Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) Earns Hold Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the bank’s stock.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Heartland Financial USA from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $51.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $45.60.

Heartland Financial USA Price Performance

HTLF stock opened at $57.46 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.61 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.72. Heartland Financial USA has a 1 year low of $26.44 and a 1 year high of $59.16.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The bank reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $188.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $183.19 million. Heartland Financial USA had a return on equity of 11.11% and a net margin of 7.12%. Heartland Financial USA’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.09 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Heartland Financial USA will post 4.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Heartland Financial USA’s payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

Insider Transactions at Heartland Financial USA

In related news, EVP Lo B. Nestman sold 4,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total transaction of $220,064.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heartland Financial USA

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Heartland Financial USA in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 2nd quarter valued at $83,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Heartland Financial USA by 37,550.0% during the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,259 shares of the bank’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 2,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 695.2% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,807 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 2,454 shares in the last quarter. 71.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.