Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) Shares Pass Above 50 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBF)’s share price passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $16.00 and traded as high as $17.02. Waterstone Financial shares last traded at $16.69, with a volume of 48,974 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSBF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Waterstone Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, December 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Waterstone Financial in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy”.

Waterstone Financial Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $308.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.55 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.99.

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The savings and loans company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Waterstone Financial had a net margin of 12.08% and a return on equity of 6.99%. The business had revenue of $37.04 million for the quarter.

Waterstone Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 8th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 8th. Waterstone Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.11%.

Insider Activity at Waterstone Financial

In other news, Director Michael L. Hansen sold 79,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.16, for a total transaction of $1,210,859.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 8.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Waterstone Financial by 557.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,875 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Waterstone Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Waterstone Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in Waterstone Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $138,000. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Waterstone Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $143,000. 62.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waterstone Financial Company Profile

Waterstone Financial, Inc is a bank holding company based in Glendale, Wisconsin, that provides a broad range of financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions. Its primary operations are conducted through its wholly owned subsidiary, Waterstone Bank, which offers deposit products, loan facilities and treasury management services. The company focuses on delivering relationship-based banking solutions tailored to the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises as well as retail customers.

In addition to traditional commercial and consumer banking, Waterstone Financial supports its clients with specialized financing, including real estate, equipment and asset-based lending.