Strs Ohio Boosts Stock Holdings in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Strs Ohio increased its stake in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 22.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 91,583 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,983 shares during the period. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $8,494,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,595,000. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in Wintrust Financial by 148.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 883,347 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,661,000 after acquiring an additional 528,449 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Wintrust Financial by 11.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,651,381 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $351,179,000 after acquiring an additional 480,942 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 136.2% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 664,210 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $53,237,000 after acquiring an additional 382,944 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eaton Vance Management boosted its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial by 160.5% during the first quarter. Eaton Vance Management now owns 542,398 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,406,000 after purchasing an additional 334,184 shares during the period. 93.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Wintrust Financial

In other news, insider Edward J. Wehmer sold 9,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.36, for a total value of $943,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 177,124 shares in the company, valued at $17,599,040.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Edward J. Wehmer sold 9,500 shares of Wintrust Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.36, for a total value of $943,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 177,124 shares in the company, valued at $17,599,040.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jeffrey D. Hahnfeld sold 588 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.88, for a total transaction of $57,553.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $333,770.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wintrust Financial Trading Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ WTFC opened at $94.96 on Thursday. Wintrust Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $58.12 and a 12 month high of $105.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $98.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.54. The stock has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.91 and a beta of 1.21.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 18th. The bank reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.42 by ($0.55). The firm had revenue of $570.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $578.89 million. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 13.23%. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 9.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, February 8th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Wintrust Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 7th. Wintrust Financial’s payout ratio is presently 18.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays initiated coverage on Wintrust Financial in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $135.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on Wintrust Financial from $105.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Wintrust Financial from $109.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.83.

Wintrust Financial 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.