Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBF) Director Michael L. Hansen Sells 2,757 Shares

Key Points

• Michael L. Hansen, a Director at Waterstone Financial, sold 2,757 shares at an average price of $13.80, resulting in a total transaction value of $38,046.60.
• The company reported earnings of $0.43 per share in its last quarterly results and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15, indicating a yield of 4.3%.
• Institutional investors currently hold approximately 62.71% of Waterstone Financial's stock, with notable increases in stakes from several investment firms in recent quarters.

Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBF - Get Free Report) Director Michael L. Hansen sold 2,757 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total transaction of $38,046.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 146,358 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,019,740.40. The trade was a 1.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Waterstone Financial Stock Performance

WSBF stock traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $14.08. 29,776 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 49,916. The firm has a market cap of $263.01 million, a P/E ratio of 12.35 and a beta of 0.73. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $13.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.35. Waterstone Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $11.61 and a 1-year high of $16.86.

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The savings and loans company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $38.04 million for the quarter. Waterstone Financial had a net margin of 10.47% and a return on equity of 6.07%.

Waterstone Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 8th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. Waterstone Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waterstone Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waterstone Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Waterstone Financial by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 85,628 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $1,151,000 after acquiring an additional 33,715 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in shares of Waterstone Financial by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 9,441 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 2,055 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Waterstone Financial by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 24,187 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 3,363 shares during the period. Fourthstone LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waterstone Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $504,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Waterstone Financial by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 163,551 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $2,198,000 after acquiring an additional 5,029 shares during the period. 62.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waterstone Financial Company Profile

Waterstone Financial, Inc operates as a bank holding company for WaterStone Bank SSB that provides various financial services to customers in southeastern Wisconsin, the United States. It operates in two segments, Community Banking and Mortgage Banking. The Community Banking segment offers consumer and business banking products and services, such as deposit and transactional solutions, including checking accounts, online banking and bill pay services, money transfer services, as well as credit, debit, and pre-paid cards; investable funds solutions comprising savings, money market deposits, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit; residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, personal and installment loans, real estate financing, business loans, and business lines of credit; and fixed and variable annuities, insurance products, and trust and investment management accounts.