IMS Capital Management Buys Shares of 9,614 WaFd, Inc. $WAFD

Key Points

• IMS Capital Management has acquired 9,614 shares of WaFd, Inc. for approximately $281,000, increasing the institutional ownership of the stock to 83.71%.
• Recent analyst upgrades have increased WaFd's price targets, with firms like DA Davidson and Stephens raising their price objectives to $33.00, reflecting a positive outlook for the stock.
• WaFd announced a quarterly dividend of $0.27, representing a 3.5% yield, with a dividend payout ratio of 41.06% for the company.

IMS Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 9,614 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in WaFd during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in WaFd by 232.4% during the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,978 shares of the bank's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in WaFd by 35.2% during the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,002 shares of the bank's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in WaFd by 83.0% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the bank's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA bought a new stake in WaFd during the second quarter worth about $113,000. 83.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WAFD. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on WaFd from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded WaFd from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on WaFd from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Stephens upped their price objective on WaFd from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on WaFd from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WaFd presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sean Singleton sold 1,004 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.71, for a total value of $31,836.84. Following the transaction, the director owned 9,278 shares in the company, valued at approximately $294,205.38. This represents a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.46% of the company's stock.

WaFd Stock Performance

Shares of WAFD opened at $31.04 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $30.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 0.93. WaFd, Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.75 and a 52 week high of $38.62.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.06. WaFd had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 15.57%.The firm had revenue of $186.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $184.47 million. Equities analysts forecast that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. WaFd's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.06%.

WaFd Company Profile

WaFd, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Washington Federal Bank that provides lending, depository, insurance, and other banking services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including business and personal checking accounts, and term certificates of deposit, as well as money market accounts and passbook savings accounts.

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