Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Cuts Stake in Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in shares of Wintrust Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WTFC) by 33.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,027 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 11,910 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Wintrust Financial were worth $2,996,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 10,539 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,144,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 16,713 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,814,000 after purchasing an additional 1,693 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 8,122 shares of the bank’s stock worth $881,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Wintrust Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $273,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of Wintrust Financial by 77.9% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 653 shares of the bank’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Wintrust Financial

In related news, EVP Jeffrey D. Hahnfeld sold 416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.95, for a total value of $54,475.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $298,042.20. This trade represents a 15.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO David L. Stoehr sold 2,363 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 19,858 shares in the company, valued at $2,607,752.56. The trade was a 10.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,178 shares of company stock worth $1,336,315 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.47% of the company’s stock.

Wintrust Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:WTFC opened at $107.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.45 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company’s 50-day moving average is $127.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.78. Wintrust Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $91.38 and a 12-month high of $142.04.

Wintrust Financial (NASDAQ:WTFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The bank reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.11. Wintrust Financial had a net margin of 17.52% and a return on equity of 12.60%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.87 EPS. Research analysts expect that Wintrust Financial Co. will post 10.36 EPS for the current year.

Wintrust Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change from Wintrust Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. Wintrust Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WTFC shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $157.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Wintrust Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Wintrust Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Wintrust Financial from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.69.

About Wintrust Financial

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.