Wintrust Financial Corporation $WTFC Stake Increased by Earnest Partners LLC

Earnest Partners LLC boosted its stake in Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,442,018 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,048 shares during the period. Wintrust Financial accounts for 0.8% of Earnest Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Earnest Partners LLC owned approximately 2.15% of Wintrust Financial worth $190,981,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wintrust Financial during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Wintrust Financial by 75.3% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 312 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 93.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wintrust Financial Stock Down 1.0%

NASDAQ:WTFC opened at $130.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $147.82 and a 200-day moving average of $138.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.76 billion, a PE ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 0.85. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a 52 week low of $89.10 and a 52 week high of $162.96.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The bank reported $3.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $714.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $700.85 million. Wintrust Financial had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 19.48%.During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.63 EPS. Analysts predict that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 10.36 EPS for the current year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 5th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from Wintrust Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 5th. Wintrust Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WTFC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on Wintrust Financial from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Wintrust Financial from $161.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Wintrust Financial from $167.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $176.00 target price on shares of Wintrust Financial in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $165.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wintrust Financial

In other news, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 2,499 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.16, for a total transaction of $365,253.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,724,130.08. This represents a 11.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard B. Murphy sold 3,291 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.05, for a total transaction of $480,650.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 46,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,725,456.45. This trade represents a 6.67% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,662 shares of company stock valued at $1,705,730. Corporate insiders own 1.01% of the company’s stock.

About Wintrust Financial

Wintrust Financial Corporation is a Chicago‐area bank holding company headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois. Through its primary subsidiary, Wintrust Bank, the company operates a network of community banks serving metropolitan Chicago and select markets in southeastern Wisconsin. These locally branded banks provide personalized commercial and consumer banking solutions tailored to small and mid‐size businesses, professionals, and individual clients.

The firm’s core offerings include deposit products, commercial and residential lending, treasury management, and mortgage banking services.