WaFd, Inc. $WAFD Shares Acquired by William Blair Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in WaFd, Inc. by 8.3%, holding approximately 1.20% of the company, worth about $28.19 million as of its latest filing.
• WaFd recently reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $0.75, and generated revenue of $190.55 million compared to a $191.04 million consensus estimate.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.27 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.8%, with a payout ratio of 40.91%.

William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD - Free Report) by 8.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 962,787 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 74,017 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned approximately 1.20% of WaFd worth $28,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Comerica Bank boosted its holdings in WaFd by 0.5% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 69,180 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,977,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in WaFd by 3.5% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 13,892 shares of the bank's stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in WaFd by 3.5% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 13,846 shares of the bank's stock worth $405,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in WaFd by 12.7% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,239 shares of the bank's stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in WaFd by 35.2% in the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,002 shares of the bank's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.71% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at WaFd

In related news, Director Sean Singleton sold 1,004 shares of WaFd stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.71, for a total transaction of $31,836.84. Following the sale, the director directly owned 9,278 shares in the company, valued at $294,205.38. The trade was a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.46% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

WaFd Stock Performance

WAFD stock opened at $28.07 on Monday. WaFd, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.75 and a 1 year high of $38.62. The stock's fifty day moving average is $30.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.63 and a beta of 0.88.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.03). WaFd had a net margin of 16.02% and a return on equity of 8.40%. The company had revenue of $190.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $191.04 million. On average, research analysts predict that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. WaFd's payout ratio is currently 40.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on WAFD shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of WaFd from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of WaFd from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Stephens raised their target price on WaFd from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of WaFd in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on WaFd from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, WaFd has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.25.

WaFd 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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