Heritage Financial Corporation $HFWA Shares Sold by Northern Trust Corp

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its holdings in Heritage Financial Corporation by 5.0%, owning 412,199 shares worth approximately $10.03 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• Heritage Financial recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, which translates to an annual yield of 3.9%.
• Wall Street analysts have recently downgraded Heritage Financial's rating from "hold" to "sell," with a consensus price target of $27.67 for the stock.

Northern Trust Corp lessened its stake in shares of Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA - Free Report) by 5.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 412,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 21,479 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.21% of Heritage Financial worth $10,029,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,972 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 519.0% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 3,553 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 2,979 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 475.6% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 3,989 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,042 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $167,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.30% of the company's stock.

Heritage Financial Stock Performance

HFWA stock traded up $0.09 on Thursday, hitting $24.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 157,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 163,248. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.60. Heritage Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $19.84 and a 1 year high of $27.58. The stock has a market cap of $845.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.41 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.03. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 15.22% and a return on equity of 7.34%. The firm had revenue of $56.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.54 million. Equities analysts predict that Heritage Financial Corporation will post 2.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heritage Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 6th were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 6th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Heritage Financial's dividend payout ratio is 67.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Heritage Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Heritage Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $27.67.

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Heritage Bank that provides various financial services to small and medium sized businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, such as noninterest demand deposits, interest bearing demand deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, personal checking accounts, and certificates of deposit.