Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) Hits New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $125.00 and last traded at $125.00, with a volume of 5432 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $115.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on WTFC shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Wintrust Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Wintrust Financial from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on Wintrust Financial from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Wintrust Financial Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $103.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $8.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.60 and a beta of 1.15.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The bank reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $615.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $623.45 million. Wintrust Financial had a return on equity of 11.99% and a net margin of 16.52%. Wintrust Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Wintrust Financial’s payout ratio is presently 18.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 1,607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.46, for a total transaction of $182,330.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,874 shares in the company, valued at $1,687,604.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Richard B. Murphy sold 4,099 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.63, for a total transaction of $473,967.37. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,892,420.93. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 1,607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.46, for a total value of $182,330.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,874 shares in the company, valued at $1,687,604.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,198 shares of company stock worth $2,445,314 over the last three months. 1.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WTFC. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Wintrust Financial by 825.0% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 296 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Wintrust Financial by 62.0% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 512 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. increased its stake in Wintrust Financial by 138.8% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 578 shares of the bank’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Wintrust Financial by 77.9% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 653 shares of the bank’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. 93.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Wintrust Financial

Wintrust Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company. It operates in three segments: Community Banking, Specialty Finance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banking segment offers non-interest bearing deposits, non-brokered interest-bearing transaction accounts, and savings and domestic time deposits; home equity, consumer, and real estate loans; safe deposit facilities; and automatic teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, and other services.