Guild (NYSE:GHLD) Shares Up 5.3% – Should You Buy?

Guild Holdings (NYSE:GHLD) rose 5.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $13.96 and last traded at $13.96. 7,374 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 11,793 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.26.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Guild Trading Up 5.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $866.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.03, a PEG ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s 50-day moving average is $12.83 and its 200-day moving average is $14.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Guild Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Guild’s payout ratio is 64.94%.

Institutional Trading of Guild

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Guild by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 15,441 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,000 after acquiring an additional 2,421 shares in the last quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC increased its position in Guild by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 16,799 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 6,134 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Guild by 8.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Guild by 2.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 98,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,634,000 after buying an additional 1,901 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 101,209 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 17.52% of the company’s stock.

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.