SG Americas Securities LLC Grows Holdings in WaFd, Inc. $WAFD

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) by 112.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,645 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 28,406 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC owned 0.07% of WaFd worth $1,718,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of WaFd by 42.8% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,174 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in shares of WaFd by 57.6% during the second quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in WaFd by 604.5% during 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 period. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in shares of WaFd during the third quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of WaFd by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,837 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WaFd Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WAFD opened at $31.81 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.01 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average is $32.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.52. WaFd, Inc. has a 1-year low of $23.75 and a 1-year high of $34.29.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.01). WaFd had a return on equity of 8.67% and a net margin of 17.45%.The company had revenue of $188.32 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.36 million. As a group, research analysts expect that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. WaFd’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $34.00 price target on shares of WaFd in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WaFd in a report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of WaFd from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on WaFd from $33.50 to $30.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Cathy E. Cooper sold 5,300 shares of WaFd stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 94,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,199,876.35. This trade represents a 5.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.