Guild (NYSE:GHLD) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Guild Holdings (NYSE:GHLD) shares gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $15.93, but opened at $16.26. Guild shares last traded at $15.80, with a volume of 3,155 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GHLD. Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of Guild from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Guild from $11.50 to $12.50 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Guild currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.60.

Guild Trading Down 0.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a current ratio of 0.06. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $12.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.97. The firm has a market cap of $979.32 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 0.98.

Guild Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.64%. Guild’s payout ratio is 64.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Guild

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Guild by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 15,441 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 2,421 shares during the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Guild by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 16,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 6,134 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Guild by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 1,709 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Guild by 2.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 98,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,634,000 after acquiring an additional 1,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Guild by 419.9% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 125,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,768,000 after acquiring an additional 101,209 shares during the period. 17.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Guild Company Profile

Guild Holdings Company originates, sells, and services residential mortgage loans in the United States. It operates in two segments, Origination and Servicing. The company offers residential mortgages through retail and correspondent channels. Guild Holdings Company was incorporated in 1960 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.