Insider Selling: Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Director Sells 22,500 Shares of Stock

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Director John K. Schmidt sold 22,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total transaction of $1,537,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 60,541 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,136,161.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Heartland Financial USA Stock Performance

HTLF stock traded down $1.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $66.42. The company had a trading volume of 310,759 shares, compared to its average volume of 292,110. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. has a 12 month low of $29.38 and a 12 month high of $69.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $58.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.02. The firm has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a PE ratio of 38.11 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.17. Heartland Financial USA had a return on equity of 10.81% and a net margin of 8.79%. The business had revenue of $272.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Heartland Financial USA, Inc. will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 12th. Heartland Financial USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.04%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heartland Financial USA

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Heartland Financial USA by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,890 shares of the bank’s stock worth $901,000 after buying an additional 2,515 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 49.5% in the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 17,266 shares of the bank’s stock worth $979,000 after acquiring an additional 5,720 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 3.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,456,428 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $82,579,000 after purchasing an additional 53,755 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA during the 3rd quarter valued at $426,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its holdings in Heartland Financial USA by 58.2% during the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 15,504 shares of the bank’s stock worth $879,000 after purchasing an additional 5,706 shares in the last quarter. 71.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Heartland Financial USA in a research note on Friday, November 8th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Two 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Heartland Financial USA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.60.

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.