Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Hits New 1-Year High Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $28.19 and last traded at $27.20, with a volume of 115425 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $26.26.

The financial services provider reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.09. Heritage Financial had a return on equity of 8.21% and a net margin of 17.27%.The business had revenue of $66.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.95 million.

Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 28th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 28th. Heritage Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 58.18%.

Key Headlines Impacting Heritage Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Heritage Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat estimates — Heritage reported $0.66 EPS vs. consensus $0.57 and revenue of $66.35M, with net income and return-on-assets improving vs. prior quarter. The topline and margin upside help justify re-rating toward peers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Management signaling M&A activity — the company said it is preparing an acquisition, which investors often view as a growth catalyst if it expands franchise or adds accretive loans. That commentary amplified the market reaction to the beat. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders approved stock issuance to enable a merger — approval clears a structural hurdle for the planned transaction but does not disclose deal economics (price, consideration mix or timing). The approval removes execution risk but leaves valuation/dilution unresolved. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings details available — the earnings call transcript and slide deck provide management commentary on loan growth, margins and capital plans; no sweeping guidance revision was highlighted in headlines, so investors will parse the transcript for forward signals. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Potential dilution risk — the authorized stock issuance to fund a merger could dilute existing shareholders depending on deal structure and exchange ratio, which may temper multiple expansion unless the transaction is clearly accretive. Read More.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on HFWA shares. DA Davidson set a $29.00 target price on Heritage Financial in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Zacks Research lowered Heritage Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Heritage Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Heritage Financial from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Heritage Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Bryan Mcdonald purchased 19,106 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $22.32 per share, for a total transaction of $426,445.92. Following the completion of the acquisition, the president owned 31,363 shares in the company, valued at $700,022.16. This trade represents a 155.88% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in shares of Heritage Financial in the third quarter worth $11,210,000. Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new position in Heritage Financial in the third quarter valued at about $10,775,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Heritage Financial by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,977,315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,979,000 after purchasing an additional 225,201 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,626,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,531,000 after purchasing an additional 220,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Heritage Financial by 437.3% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 107,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,615,000 after buying an additional 87,479 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.30% of the company’s stock.

Heritage Financial Stock Up 7.2%

The stock has a market cap of $955.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a fifty day moving average of $24.33 and a 200 day moving average of $23.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) is a bank holding company headquartered in Spokane, Washington. Through its primary subsidiary, Heritage Bank, the company provides a comprehensive range of banking and financial services to both individual and commercial clients. Heritage Bank’s offerings encompass deposit products, lending solutions, treasury and cash management services, mortgage banking, and wealth management, positioning the organization as a full-service community bank.

The company’s lending portfolio includes commercial real estate loans, agricultural loans, small business administration (SBA) loans, construction and development financing, and a variety of consumer mortgage products.