Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hawthorn Bancshares (NASDAQ:HWBK) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning.

Hawthorn Bancshares Stock Up 3.8 %

HWBK stock opened at $32.75 on Thursday. Hawthorn Bancshares has a 12 month low of $17.86 and a 12 month high of $34.00. The firm has a market cap of $228.92 million, a PE ratio of 36.39 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Hawthorn Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Investors of record on Sunday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Hawthorn Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 84.44%.

Insider Activity at Hawthorn Bancshares

In related news, Director Jonathan Holtaway sold 5,053 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.57, for a total value of $144,364.21. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 402,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,498,282.20. This represents a 1.24 % 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. Company insiders own 23.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hawthorn Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HWBK. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 278,318 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,686,000 after acquiring an additional 12,800 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 68,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after acquiring an additional 6,955 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 36.5% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 25,043 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $496,000 after acquiring an additional 6,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Hawthorn Bancshares by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 27,169 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 30.73% of the company’s stock.

Hawthorn Bancshares Company Profile

Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Hawthorn Bank that provides various banking services in the United States. It accepts checking, savings, money market, individual retirement, and other time deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also offers commercial and industrial, single payment personal, installment, commercial and residential real estate, and consumer loans, as well as equipment, operating, and small business administration loans; and debit and credit cards.