Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. Cuts Position in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,133,364 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 8,029 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $141,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 2,569 shares of the bank’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in Wintrust Financial by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 18,500 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,307,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Gitterman Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Wintrust Financial by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Gitterman Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,373 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $296,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its position in shares of Wintrust Financial by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,971 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Access Investment Management LLC now owns 17,855 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,227,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.48% of the company’s stock.

Wintrust Financial Price Performance

WTFC stock opened at $106.66 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.63. The stock has a market cap of $7.14 billion, a PE ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.94. Wintrust Financial Co. has a one year low of $89.10 and a one year high of $142.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The bank reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.17. Wintrust Financial had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 17.52%. The business had revenue of $643.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $643.11 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 10.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wintrust Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 8th. Wintrust Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on WTFC shares. StockNews.com downgraded Wintrust Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on 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 research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price (up previously from $135.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Wintrust Financial from $155.00 to $138.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wintrust Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $132.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wintrust Financial

In other Wintrust Financial news, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 2,363 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.32, for a total transaction of $310,309.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 19,858 shares in the company, valued at $2,607,752.56. This represents a 10.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO David A. Dykstra sold 4,213 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.31, for a total value of $553,209.03. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 206,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,088,465.14. This represents a 2.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,178 shares of company stock worth $1,336,315 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.01% of the company’s stock.

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.