Guild (NYSE:GHLD) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Guild Holdings (NYSE:GHLD) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $14.43, but opened at $13.45. Guild shares last traded at $13.70, with a volume of 12,824 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on GHLD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Guild from $11.50 to $12.50 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Compass Point lifted their target price on Guild from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $16.60.

Guild Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $852.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.88, a PEG ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a current ratio of 0.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $12.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.05.

Guild Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 14.52%. Guild’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.94%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Guild

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GHLD. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. grew its position in Guild by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 653,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,875,000 after acquiring an additional 69,603 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Guild by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 98,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,634,000 after acquiring an additional 1,901 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Guild by 419.9% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 125,311 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,768,000 after acquiring an additional 101,209 shares during the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. grew its position in Guild by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 344,742 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,864,000 after acquiring an additional 1,535 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its position in shares of Guild by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 628,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,870,000 after buying an additional 31,540 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 17.52% of the company’s stock.

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.