Strid Group LLC Makes New Investment in WSFS Financial Corporation $WSFS

Key Points

• Strid Group LLC has acquired 5,103 shares of WSFS Financial Corporation, valued at approximately $281,000, marking their first investment in the company during the second quarter.
• WSFS Financial has received multiple ratings upgrades, including a "buy" rating from TD Cowen and a price target increase to $70.00 from DA Davidson, reflecting positive analyst sentiment.
• The company's latest earnings report showed a significant earnings per share (EPS) of $1.27, exceeding estimates, alongside an annualized dividend of $0.68, representing a yield of 1.3%.

Strid Group LLC bought a new position in WSFS Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WSFS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 5,103 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of WSFS Financial by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,320,766 shares of the bank's stock valued at $120,379,000 after buying an additional 7,591 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of WSFS Financial by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 969,476 shares of the bank's stock valued at $50,287,000 after buying an additional 15,281 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP grew its stake in shares of WSFS Financial by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 892,286 shares of the bank's stock valued at $46,283,000 after buying an additional 109,519 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of WSFS Financial by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 748,085 shares of the bank's stock valued at $38,803,000 after buying an additional 7,501 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of WSFS Financial by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 597,649 shares of the bank's stock valued at $31,000,000 after buying an additional 4,913 shares during the period. 88.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSFS has been the subject of several research reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of WSFS Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of WSFS Financial in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of WSFS Financial from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.25.

WSFS Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WSFS Financial stock opened at $53.94 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.02 billion, a PE ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 0.86. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $55.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.84. WSFS Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $42.44 and a 1 year high of $62.75.

WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $267.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $221.93 million. WSFS Financial had a net margin of 19.29% and a return on equity of 10.15%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that WSFS Financial Corporation will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WSFS Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. WSFS Financial's dividend payout ratio is 14.91%.

About WSFS Financial

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.

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