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Heritage Financial (HFWA) Competitors

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$28.37 -0.53 (-1.83%)
Closing price 09/9/2026 04:00 PM Eastern
Extended Trading
$28.38 +0.02 (+0.05%)
As of 09/9/2026 07:30 PM Eastern
Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Massive. Learn more.

HFWA vs. BANR, BUSE, CATY, FFBC, and FRME

Should you buy Heritage Financial stock or one of its competitors? Heritage Financial's main competitors and comparable companies include Banner (BANR), First Busey (BUSE), Cathay General Bancorp (CATY), First Financial Bancorp. (FFBC), and First Merchants (FRME). Companies are selected based on similarities in market, industry, and size. These companies are all part of the "regional banks" industry.

How does Heritage Financial compare to Banner?

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) and Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings and media sentiment.

In the previous week, Banner had 4 more articles in the media than Heritage Financial. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Banner and 3 mentions for Heritage Financial. Heritage Financial's average media sentiment score of 1.37 beat Banner's score of 1.07 indicating that Heritage Financial is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Heritage Financial
2 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
Banner
5 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
1 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Banner has a net margin of 23.55% compared to Heritage Financial's net margin of 20.44%. Banner's return on equity of 10.72% beat Heritage Financial's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Heritage Financial20.44% 8.78% 1.15%
Banner 23.55%10.72%1.27%

Banner has higher revenue and earnings than Heritage Financial. Banner is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heritage Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Heritage Financial$335.97M3.46$67.53M$2.1013.51
Banner$877.77M2.73$195.38M$6.0611.62

Heritage Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Banner pays an annual dividend of $2.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. Heritage Financial pays out 47.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Banner pays out 34.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Heritage Financial has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Heritage Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

78.3% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.3% of Banner shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of Banner shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Heritage Financial currently has a consensus target price of $32.50, indicating a potential upside of 14.56%. Banner has a consensus target price of $72.75, indicating a potential upside of 3.32%. Given Heritage Financial's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Heritage Financial is more favorable than Banner.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Heritage Financial
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
Banner
0 Sell rating(s)
4 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.33

Heritage Financial has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its stock price is 52% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Banner has a beta of 0.82, meaning that its stock price is 18% less volatile than the broader market.

Summary

Banner beats Heritage Financial on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Heritage Financial compare to First Busey?

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) and First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their media sentiment, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.

First Busey has higher revenue and earnings than Heritage Financial. First Busey is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heritage Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Heritage Financial$335.97M3.46$67.53M$2.1013.51
First Busey$1.04B2.39$135.26M$2.4212.48

78.3% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.5% of First Busey shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.8% of First Busey shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Heritage Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. First Busey pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Heritage Financial pays out 47.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Busey pays out 43.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Heritage Financial has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years and First Busey has raised its dividend for 10 consecutive years. Heritage Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

In the previous week, Heritage Financial had 1 more articles in the media than First Busey. MarketBeat recorded 3 mentions for Heritage Financial and 2 mentions for First Busey. Heritage Financial's average media sentiment score of 1.37 beat First Busey's score of 0.78 indicating that Heritage Financial is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Heritage Financial
2 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
First Busey
1 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
1 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Heritage Financial currently has a consensus target price of $32.50, indicating a potential upside of 14.56%. First Busey has a consensus target price of $32.00, indicating a potential upside of 5.93%. Given Heritage Financial's higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Heritage Financial is more favorable than First Busey.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Heritage Financial
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
First Busey
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.57

Heritage Financial has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its share price is 52% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, First Busey has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its share price is 29% less volatile than the broader market.

First Busey has a net margin of 21.00% compared to Heritage Financial's net margin of 20.44%. First Busey's return on equity of 10.48% beat Heritage Financial's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Heritage Financial20.44% 8.78% 1.15%
First Busey 21.00%10.48%1.40%

Summary

First Busey beats Heritage Financial on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Heritage Financial compare to Cathay General Bancorp?

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) and Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends, earnings, media sentiment and profitability.

In the previous week, Cathay General Bancorp had 3 more articles in the media than Heritage Financial. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for Cathay General Bancorp and 3 mentions for Heritage Financial. Heritage Financial's average media sentiment score of 1.37 beat Cathay General Bancorp's score of 1.15 indicating that Heritage Financial is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Cathay General Bancorp
5 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
Heritage Financial
2 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Cathay General Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Heritage Financial. Cathay General Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heritage Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Cathay General Bancorp$1.38B2.96$315.12M$5.1211.98
Heritage Financial$335.97M3.46$67.53M$2.1013.51

Cathay General Bancorp has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its share price is 15% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Heritage Financial has a beta of 0.48, indicating that its share price is 52% less volatile than the broader market.

Cathay General Bancorp has a net margin of 24.66% compared to Heritage Financial's net margin of 20.44%. Cathay General Bancorp's return on equity of 11.71% beat Heritage Financial's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Cathay General Bancorp24.66% 11.71% 1.43%
Heritage Financial 20.44%8.78%1.15%

Cathay General Bancorp currently has a consensus target price of $62.25, suggesting a potential upside of 1.48%. Heritage Financial has a consensus target price of $32.50, suggesting a potential upside of 14.56%. Given Heritage Financial's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Heritage Financial is more favorable than Cathay General Bancorp.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Cathay General Bancorp
1 Sell rating(s)
4 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.00
Heritage Financial
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50

Cathay General Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Heritage Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Cathay General Bancorp pays out 29.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Heritage Financial pays out 47.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Heritage Financial has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Heritage Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

75.0% of Cathay General Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.3% of Heritage Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 4.5% of Cathay General Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Heritage Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Cathay General Bancorp beats Heritage Financial on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Heritage Financial compare to First Financial Bancorp.?

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) and First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, media sentiment, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and valuation.

Heritage Financial has a beta of 0.48, suggesting that its stock price is 52% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, First Financial Bancorp. has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its stock price is 9% less volatile than the broader market.

First Financial Bancorp. has higher revenue and earnings than Heritage Financial. First Financial Bancorp. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heritage Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Heritage Financial$335.97M3.46$67.53M$2.1013.51
First Financial Bancorp.$996.38M3.39$255.60M$2.8311.38

Heritage Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. First Financial Bancorp. pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Heritage Financial pays out 47.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Financial Bancorp. pays out 36.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Heritage Financial has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years and First Financial Bancorp. has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Heritage Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

In the previous week, First Financial Bancorp. had 1 more articles in the media than Heritage Financial. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for First Financial Bancorp. and 3 mentions for Heritage Financial. Heritage Financial's average media sentiment score of 1.37 beat First Financial Bancorp.'s score of 0.96 indicating that Heritage Financial is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Heritage Financial
2 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
First Financial Bancorp.
3 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Heritage Financial presently has a consensus target price of $32.50, indicating a potential upside of 14.56%. First Financial Bancorp. has a consensus target price of $33.67, indicating a potential upside of 4.52%. Given Heritage Financial's higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Heritage Financial is more favorable than First Financial Bancorp..

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Heritage Financial
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
First Financial Bancorp.
0 Sell rating(s)
4 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50

First Financial Bancorp. has a net margin of 20.77% compared to Heritage Financial's net margin of 20.44%. First Financial Bancorp.'s return on equity of 11.13% beat Heritage Financial's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Heritage Financial20.44% 8.78% 1.15%
First Financial Bancorp. 20.77%11.13%1.49%

78.3% of Heritage Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.2% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are held by institutional investors. 1.5% of Heritage Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of First Financial Bancorp. shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

First Financial Bancorp. beats Heritage Financial on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Heritage Financial compare to First Merchants?

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) and First Merchants (NASDAQ:FRME) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, risk, earnings and media sentiment.

Heritage Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. First Merchants pays an annual dividend of $1.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Heritage Financial pays out 47.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. First Merchants pays out 47.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Heritage Financial has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years and First Merchants has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years. First Merchants is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Heritage Financial has a net margin of 20.44% compared to First Merchants' net margin of 17.05%. First Merchants' return on equity of 8.86% beat Heritage Financial's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Heritage Financial20.44% 8.78% 1.15%
First Merchants 17.05%8.86%1.12%

78.3% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.9% of First Merchants shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Heritage Financial shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.8% of First Merchants shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Heritage Financial has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its share price is 52% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, First Merchants has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its share price is 16% less volatile than the broader market.

First Merchants has higher revenue and earnings than Heritage Financial. First Merchants is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heritage Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Heritage Financial$335.97M3.46$67.53M$2.1013.51
First Merchants$1.05B2.43$226M$3.1213.05

In the previous week, Heritage Financial and Heritage Financial both had 3 articles in the media. First Merchants' average media sentiment score of 1.46 beat Heritage Financial's score of 1.37 indicating that First Merchants is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment
Heritage Financial
2 Very Positive mention(s)
1 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive
First Merchants
3 Very Positive mention(s)
0 Positive mention(s)
0 Neutral mention(s)
0 Negative mention(s)
0 Very Negative mention(s)
Positive

Heritage Financial presently has a consensus target price of $32.50, suggesting a potential upside of 14.56%. First Merchants has a consensus target price of $49.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.33%. Given First Merchants' higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe First Merchants is more favorable than Heritage Financial.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Heritage Financial
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50
First Merchants
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
3 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.50

Summary

First Merchants beats Heritage Financial on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

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New MarketBeat Followers Over Time

This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding HFWA and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
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Media Sentiment Over Time

This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
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HFWA vs. The Competition

MetricHeritage FinancialBanks IndustryFinance SectorNASDAQ Exchange
Market Cap$1.18B$23.92B$14.05B$12.88B
Dividend Yield3.46%3.16%5.91%9.95%
P/E Ratio13.5127.1425.7825.29
Price / Sales3.469.35504.36113.02
Price / Cash9.4316.1640.7052.32
Price / Book1.051.382.766.26
Net Income$67.53M$2.58B$1.32B$357.86M
7 Day Performance-2.94%-0.67%2.53%-0.56%
1 Month Performance-3.54%0.34%0.66%-1.04%
1 Year Performance14.40%23.29%10.52%11.31%

Heritage Financial Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
HFWA
Heritage Financial
4.3896 of 5 stars
$28.37
-1.8%
$32.50
+14.6%
+14.1%$1.18B$335.97M13.51830
BANR
Banner
3.1551 of 5 stars
$68.58
-2.2%
$72.75
+6.1%
+5.4%$2.38B$877.77M11.321,934
BUSE
First Busey
3.4624 of 5 stars
$29.90
-0.7%
$32.00
+7.0%
+22.3%$2.49B$1.04B12.361,948
CATY
Cathay General Bancorp
2.8726 of 5 stars
$60.73
-0.8%
$62.25
+2.5%
+24.5%$4.08B$870.57M11.861,268
FFBC
First Financial Bancorp.
3.0535 of 5 stars
$32.02
-1.9%
$33.67
+5.1%
+24.4%$3.43B$1.26B11.312,199

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This page (NASDAQ:HFWA) was last updated on 9/10/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
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