Home Bancorp (NASDAQ:HBCP) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Home Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:HBCP) saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. 121,145 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 38% from the previous session’s volume of 87,576 shares.The stock last traded at $68.8150 and had previously closed at $68.37.

The bank reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $39.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.57 million. Home Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.86% and a net margin of 22.18%.

Home Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from Home Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 3rd. Home Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.84%.

Key Stories Impacting Home Bancorp

Here are the key news stories impacting Home Bancorp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Home Bancorp beat Q2 estimates, posting earnings of $1.48 per share versus $1.46 expected, while revenue of $39.72 million also came in ahead of forecasts. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 per share from $0.31, a 3.2% increase, signaling confidence in its earnings and capital position. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional coverage from 24/7 Wall St., Stamford Advocate, TipRanks, and Zacks focused on the same earnings release and key quarterly metrics, reinforcing investor attention on the results. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HBCP. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Home Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Piper Sandler cut Home Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $69.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Home Bancorp from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their price target on Home Bancorp from $62.00 to $65.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Home Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO David T. Kirkley sold 655 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.80, for a total value of $41,134.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,064 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $318,019.20. This represents a 11.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Darren E. Guidry sold 1,600 shares of Home Bancorp stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.78, for a total transaction of $100,448.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,163,313.40. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,653 shares of company stock valued at $359,063. 6.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Home Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Home Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Home Bancorp by 116.3% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,430 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new position in shares of Home Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $202,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in shares of Home Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $208,000. Finally, Mariner LLC bought a new position in shares of Home Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $211,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.41% of the company’s stock.

Home Bancorp Stock Up 0.7%

The company has a market capitalization of $539.51 million, a PE ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s 50 day moving average is $66.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Home Bancorp Company Profile

Home Bancorp, Inc is the bank holding company for The Home National Bank, a full-service financial institution headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana. The company operates as a regional commercial bank serving individuals, small businesses and municipalities across Louisiana and East Texas. Through its network of branches and digital banking platforms, Home Bancorp offers a range of deposit and lending solutions designed to meet the needs of its local markets.

The company’s core offerings include retail deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as a variety of commercial and consumer lending services.