# Hills Bancorporation Hills Bancorporation is an Asset Manager based in Hills, United States. ## Overview - **Organization type:** Asset Manager - **Headquarters:** Hills, United States - **Region:** North America - **Address:** Hills, Iowa, United States - **Founded:** 1904 - **Assets under management:** Total assets > $4B (per the firm's public filings, 2024) - **Website:** hillsbank.com ## Regulatory record - **Reports private funds:** No ## About Hills Bancorporation was founded in 1904 in Hills, Iowa, and operates as the holding company for Hills Bank and Trust Company under Chairman and CEO Dwight O. Seegmiller. A fourth-generation community institution, it has grown through durable deposit relationships concentrated in Johnson, Linn, and surrounding counties. Publicly traded on the OTCQX under the symbol HBIA, the firm remains controlled by its local shareholder base rather than institutional fund complexes. Nearly the entire asset base deploys into a classic community banking loan book. According to public filings, the portfolio is dominated by single-family residential mortgages, commercial real estate secured by in-market properties, and farmland-secured agricultural operating lines. On the commercial side, construction and development loans for multi-family projects and owner-occupied small businesses constitute a meaningful allocation. The firm funds these assets through low-cost core deposits — a funding advantage that persists because no national competitor can replicate its physical branch density in towns like Kalona, Riverside, and Wellman. Total assets have surpassed $4 billion as of recent regulatory filings, driven by disciplined organic growth rather than M&A. Hills Bank maintains around 20 branch locations, with the executive team operating from the home office in Hills and a trust and wealth management division that adds fee income to the net interest margin engine. The bank operates adjacent fiduciary and farm management services for area landowners, giving it an intergenerational stickiness that extends beyond the lending relationship. In October 2023, the board declared its 39th consecutive annual cash dividend increase, underscoring persistent capital generation. Hills Bancorporation’s structural differentiator is its stubbornly local asset-liability construct. Deposit shares concentrate in towns below 5,000 residents, where branch economics dissuade larger competitors from entering. The loan book is almost entirely within a 60-mile radius, meaning credit decisions still involve a director who knows the borrower’s grandfather. This geography-bound concentration is a risk factor and a moat simultaneously — one that has produced a century of continuous operations. ## Sectors - Real Estate - Private Credit ## People - Dwight O. Seegmiller — Chairman & CEO - James A. Nowak — President ## Questions ### Who runs investment decisions at Hills Bancorporation? Lending and investment decisions are made by the senior credit committee of Hills Bank, guided by Chairman and CEO Dwight O. Seegmiller and President James A. Nowak. The bank operates under a traditional community banking governance model, with its board composed of local business owners and professionals who understand the eastern Iowa market directly. ### What does Hills Bancorporation actually invest in? The firm is not an investment manager in the traditional sense — it is a bank holding company whose asset base is entirely its loan portfolio. The primary exposures are single-family residential mortgages, commercial real estate loans, construction and development financing for multi-family and small commercial projects, and agricultural operating lines secured by farmland, almost all within a 60-mile radius of Iowa City. ### How does the firm fund its lending? Hills Bank funds its loan book through a deposit base gathered across roughly 20 branch locations in small eastern Iowa communities. The deposit franchise is sticky because national banks have largely withdrawn from towns of this size, giving Hills Bank a low-cost funding advantage that supports its net interest margin. ### Is Hills Bancorporation publicly traded? Yes. Hills Bancorporation trades on the OTCQX market under the symbol HBIA. The stock is closely held by a local shareholder base and is not widely followed by sell-side analysts, functioning more like a private company with public reporting obligations than a typical financial-sector equity. ### What is the geographic concentration of its loan book? Almost the entire loan portfolio is concentrated in eastern Iowa, specifically Johnson, Linn, Washington, and Louisa counties. This hyperlocal focus means the credit performance of the bank correlates directly with the agricultural and real estate economy of a single multi-county region. ### Does Hills Bancorporation have a wealth management or trust arm? Yes, Hills Bank operates a trust and wealth management division that provides fiduciary, estate administration, and farm management services to area landowners. This non-interest income stream complements the lending business and deepens relationships with multi-generational customers. ## Related profiles - [Greenfire Resources](https://altss.com/profile/greenfire-resources-ltd) - [Great Southern Bancorp](https://altss.com/profile/great-southern-bancorp-inc) --- Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/hills-bancorporation Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology