Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Upgraded to Hold at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Heritage Financial from “strong sell” to “hold.” Analyst sentiment is mixed, with eight analysts split between Buy and Hold ratings and an average price target of $32.67.
• Heritage Financial’s latest quarter exceeded consensus expectations, reporting $0.55 in EPS versus $0.50 expected and $86.51 million in revenue versus $86.11 million expected.
• HFWA shares opened at $29.15, up 2.2%, while institutional investors own 78.3% of the stock. Recent insider activity was negative, with insiders selling 22,004 shares worth approximately $657,200 over 90 days.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on HFWA. Stephens increased their price objective on Heritage Financial from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Heritage Financial from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Heritage Financial in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Heritage Financial in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Brean Capital raised Heritage Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $33.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $32.67.

Heritage Financial Stock Up 2.2%

HFWA opened at $29.15 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $28.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.35. Heritage Financial has a 1-year low of $21.32 and a 1-year high of $31.25. The stock has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of 14.50 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.05. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 8.70%. The firm had revenue of $86.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $86.11 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Heritage Financial will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Heritage Financial

In other news, EVP Tony Chalfant sold 3,234 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.92, for a total value of $96,761.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $609,231.04. The trade was a 13.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey Lyon sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,719 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,221,570. This represents a 19.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,004 shares of company stock worth $657,200. Company insiders own 1.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Heritage Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $172,125,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 3.4% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,213,473 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $83,550,000 after acquiring an additional 106,308 shares in the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $20,408,000. Algebris UK Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $13,860,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $11,817,000. 78.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Heritage Financial News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Heritage Financial reported third-quarter revenue of $86.5 million, slightly above the $86.1 million consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS was $0.55, ahead of the $0.50 estimate cited by several analysts, while net income rose to $18.7 million from $17.5 million in the second quarter. Heritage Financial Announces Third Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: The board authorized a repurchase of up to 2 million shares, representing approximately 5% of issued shares. The program could support earnings per share and signal that management views the stock as attractively valued. Heritage Financial Announces Equity Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: Heritage Financial declared a regular $0.25-per-share dividend, or $1.00 annualized, implying a yield of roughly 3.5% based on the supplied trading information. The payout adds to the stock’s shareholder-return appeal. Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Management expects fourth-quarter noninterest expense of $55 million to $56 million following the Kitsap systems conversion. The guidance provides visibility but indicates elevated implementation-related costs in the near term. Heritage Financial Q4 Expense Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Results were mixed depending on the earnings measure: GAAP diluted EPS was $0.46, while adjusted EPS declined from $0.57 in the second quarter and was below the $0.56 reported a year earlier. One estimate also placed the quarterly EPS shortfall at $0.02, which may limit the positive reaction. Heritage Financial Q3 Earnings Estimate Report

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation NASDAQ: HFWA is a bank holding company headquartered in Olympia, Washington. The company operates primarily through Heritage Bank, a community-focused financial institution serving businesses, individuals and organizations in Washington and Oregon.

Heritage Bank provides commercial and residential real estate lending, business and consumer loans, deposit accounts, cash-management and treasury services, online and mobile banking, and other traditional banking products.

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