WaFd, Inc. $WAFD Shares Acquired by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) by 2.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,077,059 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 40,569 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 2.64% of WaFd worth $62,914,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of WaFd by 42.8% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,174 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its position in WaFd by 57.6% during the 2nd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in WaFd by 604.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,423 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,221 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in WaFd by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,837 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of WaFd by 712.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,901 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,667 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

WaFd Price Performance

WAFD stock opened at $31.78 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.00 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. WaFd, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.75 and a 1 year high of $34.29. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.53.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $188.32 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $193.36 million. WaFd had a net margin of 17.45% and a return on equity of 8.67%. On average, equities analysts predict that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WaFd Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. WaFd’s payout ratio is presently 37.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $34.00 price objective on shares of WaFd in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of WaFd from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WaFd in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WaFd news, EVP Cathy E. Cooper sold 5,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $3,199,876.35. This trade represents a 5.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

WaFd 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.