JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) Price Target to $22.00

HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) had its price target hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research note released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an underweight rating on the stock.

HBT Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HBT opened at $18.89 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $18.92 and its 200 day moving average is $19.34. HBT Financial has a fifty-two week low of $16.33 and a fifty-two week high of $21.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $597.11 million, a PE ratio of 8.36 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80.

HBT Financial (NASDAQ:HBT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.60. The company had revenue of $70.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.78 million. HBT Financial had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 26.29%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that HBT Financial will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current year.

HBT Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. HBT Financial’s payout ratio is 33.63%.

Insider Transactions at HBT Financial

In other news, Director Roger A. Baker purchased 3,632 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.86 per share, with a total value of $68,499.52. Following the transaction, the director now owns 559,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,557,903.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Roger A. Baker acquired 1,888 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $18.68 per share, for a total transaction of $35,267.84. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 555,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,385,706.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Roger A. Baker acquired 3,632 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $18.86 per share, with a total value of $68,499.52. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 559,804 shares in the company, valued at $10,557,903.44. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 5,820 shares of company stock valued at $109,417. 58.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On HBT Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HBT. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in HBT Financial in the third quarter valued at about $121,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in HBT Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,010,000. Meredith Wealth Planning purchased a new stake in HBT Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $203,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in HBT Financial by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 67,270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,420,000 after buying an additional 19,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of HBT Financial by 70.3% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares during the last quarter. 78.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About HBT Financial

HBT Financial, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Heartland Bank and Trust Company that provides business, commercial, and retail banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and municipal entities in Central and Northeastern Illinois, and Eastern Iowa. The company's deposits accounts consist of noninterest-bearing demand deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposits, health savings accounts, and individual retirement accounts.