Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Short Interest Up 42.9% in August

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 986,100 shares, an increase of 42.9% from the August 15th total of 690,300 shares. Currently, 2.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 241,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.1 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Lo B. Nestman sold 4,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.14, for a total value of $220,064.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Heartland Financial USA during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Financial USA during the fourth quarter valued at about $50,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Heartland Financial USA in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $83,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 37,550.0% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,259 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 2,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Heartland Financial USA by 695.2% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,807 shares of the bank’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 2,454 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded 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 report on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA in a research report on Friday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.60.

Heartland Financial USA Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of HTLF traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $56.40. 25,146 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 304,100. The company has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.09 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Heartland Financial USA has a 52 week low of $26.44 and a 52 week high of $56.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $52.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.75.

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

Heartland Financial USA Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 13th. Heartland Financial USA’s payout ratio is 72.29%.

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.