WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $36.95, but opened at $36.00. WaFd shares last traded at $36.08, with a volume of 53,101 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on WAFD shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of WaFd from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of WaFd from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.25.

WaFd Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of 13.75 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.30.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. WaFd had a net margin of 14.13% and a return on equity of 9.58%. The company had revenue of $389.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that WaFd, Inc will post 3 earnings per share for the current year.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. WaFd’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.54%.

Institutional Trading of WaFd

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WAFD. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in WaFd by 31.6% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,274,665 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,430,000 after buying an additional 305,942 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WaFd by 113.4% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 272,721 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,794,000 after purchasing an additional 144,920 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC increased its position in shares of WaFd by 113.8% in the first quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 261,656 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,596,000 after purchasing an additional 139,244 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in WaFd by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,902,461 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $229,408,000 after purchasing an additional 125,020 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its position in WaFd by 353.2% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 102,577 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,978,000 after purchasing an additional 79,942 shares during the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WaFd Company 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.