WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.06, Zacks reports. WaFd had a return on equity of 8.74% and a net margin of 15.13%.

WaFd Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WAFD traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $29.74. The stock had a trading volume of 1,488,977 shares, compared to its average volume of 542,379. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.22 and a beta of 0.84. WaFd has a 1 year low of $23.75 and a 1 year high of $38.62. The business's 50 day moving average price is $29.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.16.

WaFd Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. WaFd's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on WaFd from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered WaFd from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of WaFd in a research note on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WaFd

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of WaFd by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 22,011 shares of the bank's stock worth $629,000 after buying an additional 2,783 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in WaFd by 271.2% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 30,794 shares of the bank's stock worth $867,000 after acquiring an additional 22,499 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in WaFd by 26.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 48,094 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,375,000 after acquiring an additional 10,092 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WaFd by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 246,467 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,044,000 after buying an additional 20,865 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WaFd by 862.6% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 69,306 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,981,000 after buying an additional 62,106 shares during the period. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About WaFd

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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