HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:HTB) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Brokerages

Shares of HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:HTB) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $52.00.

HTB has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of HomeTrust Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Zacks Research lowered shares of HomeTrust Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Stephens increased their target price on HomeTrust Bancshares from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of HomeTrust Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded HomeTrust Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 24th.

HomeTrust Bancshares Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of HTB opened at $46.81 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.16. The company has a market capitalization of $781.33 million, a P/E ratio of 11.79 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.08. HomeTrust Bancshares has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $52.50.

HomeTrust Bancshares (NYSE:HTB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $55.95 million during the quarter. HomeTrust Bancshares had a net margin of 23.19% and a return on equity of 11.12%. Sell-side analysts forecast that HomeTrust Bancshares will post 3.90 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HomeTrust Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. HomeTrust Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.11%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HomeTrust Bancshares

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. California State Teachers Retirement System bought a new position in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at $105,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of HomeTrust Bancshares during the 2nd quarter valued at $148,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in HomeTrust Bancshares in the 2nd quarter worth $147,000. 60.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About HomeTrust Bancshares

HomeTrust Bancshares, Inc is the holding company for HomeTrust Bank, a community-focused financial institution headquartered in Asheville, North Carolina. The company provides banking services to individuals, families, businesses and nonprofit organizations through a network of branches and digital banking channels.

HomeTrust Bank offers deposit products such as checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, along with residential mortgages, home equity loans, consumer lending and commercial loans.