Edgestream Partners L.P. Decreases Stock Holdings in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Edgestream Partners L.P. cut its stake in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 65.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,098 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 15,529 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $1,010,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTFC. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial by 14.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,153,999 shares of the bank’s stock worth $559,364,000 after acquiring an additional 637,072 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Wintrust Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $40,562,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Wintrust Financial by 36.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 802,841 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $87,132,000 after purchasing an additional 213,559 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,308,254 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $141,981,000 after buying an additional 133,311 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,627,561 shares of the bank’s stock worth $285,169,000 after buying an additional 126,724 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.48% of the company’s stock.

Wintrust Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WTFC opened at $108.36 on Wednesday. Wintrust Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $91.38 and a 1 year high of $142.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.51 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $127.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.78.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.11. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 17.52% and a return on equity of 12.60%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.87 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 10.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. This is a positive change from Wintrust Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Wintrust Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 19.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WTFC shares. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $150.00 target price (up previously from $135.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Wintrust Financial from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $152.00 target price on shares of Wintrust Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com cut Wintrust Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on Wintrust Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $157.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wintrust Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wintrust Financial

In other news, insider Richard B. Murphy sold 3,186 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.30, for a total value of $418,321.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 48,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,409,278.20. This represents a 6.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey D. Hahnfeld sold 416 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.95, for a total value of $54,475.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $298,042.20. The trade was a 15.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,178 shares of company stock worth $1,336,315 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.47% of the company’s stock.

Wintrust Financial Company Profile

Wintrust Financial Corporation operates as a financial holding company. It operates in three segments: Community Banking, Specialty Finance, and Wealth Management. The Community Banking segment offers non-interest bearing deposits, non-brokered interest-bearing transaction accounts, and savings and domestic time deposits; home equity, consumer, and real estate loans; safe deposit facilities; and automatic teller machine (ATM), online and mobile banking, and other services.