Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 53,755 Shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLF) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,456,428 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 53,755 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Heartland Financial USA were worth $82,579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Heartland Financial USA during the 3rd quarter valued at $426,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in Heartland Financial USA by 58.2% during the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 15,504 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $879,000 after purchasing an additional 5,706 shares in the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP lifted its stake in Heartland Financial USA by 105.4% during the third quarter. LMR Partners LLP now owns 88,856 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,038,000 after purchasing an additional 45,601 shares during the last quarter. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 20.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. now owns 323,577 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,347,000 after purchasing an additional 55,949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Heartland Financial USA by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 107,076 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,071,000 after purchasing an additional 5,360 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.55% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Heartland Financial USA in a research report on Sunday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Heartland Financial USA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Heartland Financial USA

In related news, EVP Mark A. Frank sold 432 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.24, for a total value of $29,047.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $71,274.40. This trade 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 through this link. Also, Director John K. Schmidt sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.32, for a total value of $1,537,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,541 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,136,161.12. The trade was a 27.10 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Financial USA Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ HTLF opened at $67.72 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of 37.97 and a beta of 0.94. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. has a 1-year low of $29.67 and a 1-year high of $70.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $60.35 and a 200-day moving average of $52.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Heartland Financial USA (NASDAQ:HTLF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $1.17 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $272.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Heartland Financial USA, Inc. will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Heartland Financial USA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 12th. Heartland Financial USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.04%.

Heartland Financial USA 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.