First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) from a strong-buy rating to a strong sell rating in a research note published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

MYFW has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen raised First Western Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Western Financial in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $24.33.

First Western Financial Price Performance

MYFW stock opened at $25.63 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $26.02 and a 200-day moving average of $23.99. The company has a market cap of $248.87 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.99 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. First Western Financial has a 12-month low of $17.52 and a 12-month high of $28.00.

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $26.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.50 million. First Western Financial had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 5.09%. As a group, equities analysts expect that First Western Financial will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Scott C. Mitchell sold 3,178 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.96, for a total transaction of $76,144.88. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,423 shares in the company, valued at $129,935.08. This represents a 36.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director David R. Duncan sold 8,626 shares of First Western Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.56, for a total value of $220,480.56. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 36,964 shares of company stock valued at $938,485 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 15.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Western Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MYFW. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of First Western Financial by 1,470.6% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in First Western Financial by 37.1% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new position in shares of First Western Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of First Western Financial by 26.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,000 after buying an additional 1,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of First Western Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $208,000. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Western Financial Company Profile

First Western Financial, Inc (NASDAQ: MYFW) is a Denver-based bank holding company that, through its principal subsidiary First Western Trust, delivers a suite of personalized financial services. The company’s core activities center on wealth management and trust administration for high-net-worth individuals, families and institutions. In addition, First Western Financial offers a comprehensive range of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market funds and certificates of deposit—designed to meet the liquidity and income needs of its clients.

Complementing its deposit offerings, First Western Financial provides fiduciary and investment management services, including estate planning, charitable giving strategies and multi-generational wealth transfer.