Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday.

Waterstone Financial Stock Down 1.3 %

Waterstone Financial stock opened at $13.46 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $13.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $260.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.33 and a beta of 0.64. Waterstone Financial has a 1-year low of $10.60 and a 1-year high of $16.86.

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Waterstone Financial had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 9.23%.

Waterstone Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 8th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.46%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 8th. Waterstone Financial’s payout ratio is currently 59.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waterstone Financial

In other Waterstone Financial news, Director Stephen J. Schmidt sold 2,195 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.76, for a total value of $30,203.20. Following the transaction, the director now owns 70,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $964,273.28. The trade was a 3.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Mark Raymond Gerke sold 2,738 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.14, for a total value of $38,715.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 30,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $428,922.76. This trade represents a 8.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 66,669 shares of company stock worth $929,283. Corporate insiders own 8.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waterstone Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in Waterstone Financial by 27.8% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 9,441 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $127,000 after buying an additional 2,055 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Waterstone Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $143,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Waterstone Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Waterstone Financial by 108.7% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 21,882 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 11,395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Waterstone Financial by 242.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,824 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 14,737 shares during the period. 62.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Waterstone Financial

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.