WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Friday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. DA Davidson cut WaFd from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $35.00 to $32.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on WaFd from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of WaFd in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of WaFd from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.75.

WaFd Stock Performance

WAFD opened at $25.24 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $29.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.47. WaFd has a 1 year low of $24.55 and a 1 year high of $38.62. The stock has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

WaFd Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.28%. This is a positive change from WaFd’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. WaFd’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WaFd

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of WaFd by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,424 shares of the bank’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group lifted its position in WaFd by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 11,134 shares of the bank’s stock worth $359,000 after buying an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in WaFd by 29.6% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,752 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of WaFd by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 98,124 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,162,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in WaFd by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,987 shares of the bank’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.