Guild (NYSE:GHLD) Shares Up 5% – Here’s Why

Guild Holdings (NYSE:GHLD)’s stock price shot up 5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $13.16 and last traded at $13.16. 2,484 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 12,587 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on GHLD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Guild from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $12.50 to $12.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Compass Point boosted their price objective on shares of Guild from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Guild currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.50.

Guild Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $795.78 million, a P/E ratio of -8.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a fifty day moving average of $13.23 and a 200 day moving average of $13.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Guild Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.56%. Guild’s dividend payout ratio is 64.94%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Guild

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Guild by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 15,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 2,421 shares in the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Guild by 57.5% during the fourth quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 16,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 6,134 shares in the last quarter. Bayview Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Guild by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Bayview Asset Management LLC now owns 1,595,844 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,517,000 after purchasing an additional 95,327 shares during the period. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. raised its holdings in Guild by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 674,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,521,000 after purchasing an additional 20,848 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Guild by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 1,709 shares during the period. 17.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Guild

Guild Holdings Company originates, sells, and services residential mortgage loans in the United States. It operates in two segments, Origination and Servicing. The company offers residential mortgages through retail and correspondent channels. Guild Holdings Company was incorporated in 1960 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.