GW&K Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Wintrust Financial Corporation $WTFC

GW&K Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Wintrust Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 496,794 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 21,879 shares during the quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $65,795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Wintrust Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Wintrust Financial during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Wintrust Financial by 75.3% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 312 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Wintrust Financial in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in Wintrust Financial in the second quarter worth about $41,000. Institutional investors own 93.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WTFC. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $167.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Wintrust Financial from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. DA Davidson upped their price target on Wintrust Financial from $165.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Wintrust Financial from $161.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Wintrust Financial from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $165.31.

Wintrust Financial Price Performance

Shares of WTFC opened at $145.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $148.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $138.61. Wintrust Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $89.10 and a 1-year high of $162.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.78 billion, a PE ratio of 12.75 and a beta of 0.85.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The bank reported $3.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $714.26 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $2.63 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Wintrust Financial Corporation will post 10.36 EPS for the current year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 5th were given a $0.55 dividend. This is an increase from Wintrust Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 5th. Wintrust Financial’s payout ratio is currently 19.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Wintrust Financial news, EVP Kathleen M. Boege sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.38, for a total transaction of $731,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,349,613.54. This trade represents a 17.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 2,499 shares of Wintrust Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.16, for a total transaction of $365,253.84. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,724,130.08. The trade was a 11.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 11,662 shares of company stock worth $1,705,730 in the last quarter. 1.01% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wintrust Financial Profile

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.