WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) Receives $32.90 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the five research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $32.90.

WAFD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $34.00 price objective on WaFd in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of WaFd from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WaFd in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of WaFd from $33.50 to $30.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday.

WaFd Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of WAFD stock opened at $33.42 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 0.86. WaFd has a 1-year low of $23.75 and a 1-year high of $34.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $32.74 and a 200 day moving average of $31.23.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $188.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.36 million. WaFd had a net margin of 17.45% and a return on equity of 8.67%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that WaFd will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

WaFd Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. WaFd’s payout ratio is presently 37.37%.

Insider Transactions at WaFd

In other news, EVP Cathy E. Cooper sold 5,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.77, for a total transaction of $178,981.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 94,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,199,876.35. This represents a 5.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Brent J. Beardall bought 3,000 shares of WaFd stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.85 per share, with a total value of $50,550.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 6,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,100. The trade was a 100.00% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WaFd

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of WaFd by 95.6% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,783 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 1,360 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its stake in WaFd by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,557,436 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,885,000 after purchasing an additional 8,039 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of WaFd by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 15,162 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in WaFd during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC raised its holdings in WaFd by 99.7% during the 4th quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 33,530 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,074,000 after buying an additional 16,740 shares during the period. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WaFd Company Profile

Washington Federal, Inc, doing business as WaFd Bank, is a publicly traded bank holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Through its subsidiary, WaFd Bank, the company provides a range of banking and financial services to individuals, small-to-medium enterprises, and commercial clients. Established in 1917 as Ballard Savings & Loan in Seattle, the institution expanded over decades to serve customers across the Western United States under the Washington Federal name and has operated as a public company since the early 1980s.

WaFd Bank’s core offerings encompass deposit accounts such as checking, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit, alongside consumer and commercial lending products.