WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Sets New 12-Month High Following Dividend Announcement

WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $34.29 and last traded at $33.6680, with a volume of 78777 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $33.32.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. WaFd’s payout ratio is currently 37.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WaFd in a report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $34.00 price objective on WaFd in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on WaFd from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of WaFd from $33.50 to $30.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of WaFd from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.90.

WaFd Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $32.65 and a 200 day moving average of $31.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $2.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.86.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $188.32 million during 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Brent J. Beardall purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $16.85 per share, with a total value of $50,550.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,100. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of WaFd

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WAFD. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of WaFd by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 22,011 shares of the bank’s stock worth $629,000 after acquiring an additional 2,783 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in WaFd by 271.2% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 30,794 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $867,000 after purchasing an additional 22,499 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in WaFd by 26.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 48,094 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,375,000 after purchasing an additional 10,092 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in WaFd by 9.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 246,467 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,044,000 after purchasing an additional 20,865 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in WaFd by 862.6% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 69,306 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,981,000 after purchasing an additional 62,106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

About WaFd

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.