Palisade Capital Management LP Sells 24,697 Shares of WSFS Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WSFS)

Palisade Capital Management LP lessened its holdings in shares of WSFS Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WSFS - Free Report) by 3.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 748,002 shares of the bank's stock after selling 24,697 shares during the period. WSFS Financial accounts for approximately 1.1% of Palisade Capital Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Palisade Capital Management LP owned 1.29% of WSFS Financial worth $38,799,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in WSFS Financial by 309.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,687,824 shares of the bank's stock worth $89,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,276,078 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in WSFS Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $32,775,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in WSFS Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $18,167,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC lifted its stake in WSFS Financial by 179.8% during the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 169,563 shares of the bank's stock valued at $9,009,000 after acquiring an additional 108,968 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in WSFS Financial by 7,004.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 105,711 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,483,000 after acquiring an additional 104,223 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.49% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on WSFS. Wall Street Zen cut shares of WSFS Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $64.00 target price on shares of WSFS Financial in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of WSFS Financial from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, WSFS Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.75.

WSFS Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WSFS traded up $0.82 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $59.05. 233,303 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 313,756. WSFS Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $42.44 and a 1 year high of $62.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $53.66 and a 200 day moving average of $52.98.

WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $256.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $235.44 million. WSFS Financial had a net margin of 18.86% and a return on equity of 10.06%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that WSFS Financial Corporation will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

WSFS Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. This is a positive change from WSFS Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. WSFS Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.28%.

WSFS Financial Company Profile

WSFS Financial Corporation operates as the savings and loan holding company for the Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB that provides various banking services in the United States. It operates through three segments: WSFS Bank, Cash Connect, and Wealth Management. It offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, demand deposits, interest-bearing demand deposits, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as accepts jumbo certificates of deposit from individuals, businesses, and municipalities.