Zacks Research Has Positive Outlook of WaFd FY2026 Earnings

WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD) – Zacks Research lifted their FY2026 earnings estimates for WaFd in a research note issued on Thursday, January 16th. Zacks Research analyst S. Shah now expects that the bank will earn $3.25 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $3.23. The consensus estimate for WaFd’s current full-year earnings is $2.82 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for WaFd’s Q4 2026 earnings at $0.84 EPS.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. DA Davidson increased their price target on WaFd from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of WaFd in a research note on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on WaFd from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on WaFd from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.00.

WaFd Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WAFD opened at $29.88 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. WaFd has a 52-week low of $25.78 and a 52-week high of $38.62. The company has a market capitalization of $2.43 billion, a PE ratio of 13.77 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a fifty day moving average of $34.23 and a 200-day moving average of $34.43.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WaFd

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WAFD. State Street Corp raised its stake in WaFd by 5.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,969,790 shares of the bank’s stock worth $138,347,000 after buying an additional 195,845 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of WaFd by 10.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,759,135 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $61,318,000 after purchasing an additional 159,750 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its stake in WaFd by 21.5% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,432,523 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,923,000 after purchasing an additional 253,044 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in WaFd by 7.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,225,248 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,700,000 after buying an additional 84,155 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of WaFd in the 3rd quarter worth about $18,583,000. 83.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Ryan Mauer sold 12,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.33, for a total value of $404,359.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 100,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,345,532.08. The trade was a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. WaFd’s payout ratio is 47.93%.

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.