HomeTrust Bancshares (NASDAQ:HTBI) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTBI) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $38.19 and last traded at $38.12, with a volume of 11316 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.29.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on HTBI. Raymond James cut shares of HomeTrust Bancshares from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $39.00 target price (up previously from $38.00) on shares of HomeTrust Bancshares in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. StockNews.com upgraded HomeTrust Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Hovde Group assumed coverage on HomeTrust Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $42.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.00.

HomeTrust Bancshares Trading Up 13.4 %

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $34.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $660.72 million, a P/E ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 0.81.

HomeTrust Bancshares (NASDAQ:HTBI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.80 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $74.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $50.13 million. HomeTrust Bancshares had a net margin of 18.53% and a return on equity of 10.55%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

HomeTrust Bancshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. This is an increase from HomeTrust Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. HomeTrust Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in HomeTrust Bancshares by 0.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 867,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,719,000 after acquiring an additional 5,364 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 673,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,220,000 after purchasing an additional 30,891 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares by 20.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 239,722 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,199,000 after purchasing an additional 40,201 shares during the period. EJF Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares by 185.6% in the first quarter. EJF Capital LLC now owns 116,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,188,000 after buying an additional 75,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its position in HomeTrust Bancshares by 10.5% during the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 105,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,153,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period. 60.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About HomeTrust Bancshares

HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for HomeTrust Bank that provides a range of retail and commercial banking products and services. The company’s deposit products include savings, money market, noninterest-bearing, and interest-bearing checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit for individuals, business, and nonprofit organizations.