Short Interest in Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) Declines By 12.1%

Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 632,300 shares, a decrease of 12.1% from the December 15th total of 719,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 212,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Heartland Financial USA Trading Up 1.8 %

HTLF traded up $1.19 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $65.78. 139,802 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 178,616. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.75 and a beta of 0.98. Heartland Financial USA has a 1-year low of $32.03 and a 1-year high of $70.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $64.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting 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 firm had revenue of $272.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.51 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Heartland Financial USA will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 14th. Heartland Financial USA’s payout ratio is 67.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Heartland Financial USA news, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total transaction of $29,047.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,060 shares in the company, valued at $71,274.40. This represents a 28.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jennifer K. Hopkins sold 5,811 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $392,591.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $470,420.28. The trade was a 45.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,743 shares of company stock valued at $1,958,839 over the last 90 days. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Heartland Financial USA

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $426,000. Water Island Capital LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $800,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $601,000. Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,626,000. Finally, Slotnik Capital LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Financial USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $13,714,000. 71.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Heartland Financial USA in a report on Friday, January 3rd. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.60.

About Heartland Financial USA

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.