Short Interest in Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA) Grows By 20.6%

Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 695,200 shares, an increase of 20.6% from the January 31st total of 576,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 191,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days. Approximately 2.1% of the company's shares are short sold.

Heritage Financial Price Performance

Shares of Heritage Financial stock traded down $0.35 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $23.56. 138,633 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 178,028. The stock has a market capitalization of $800.83 million, a PE ratio of 19.03 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Heritage Financial has a fifty-two week low of $16.55 and a fifty-two week high of $27.58. The business has a 50-day moving average of $24.57 and a 200 day moving average of $23.97.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.06. Heritage Financial had a return on equity of 7.17% and a net margin of 13.64%. On average, analysts predict that Heritage Financial will post 2.09 EPS for the current year.

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Heritage Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 6th. This is an increase from Heritage Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.07%. Heritage Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Heritage Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Insider Activity

In other Heritage Financial news, Director Frederick B. Rivera sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.43, for a total transaction of $101,720.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,844 shares in the company, valued at $97,752.92. This represents a 50.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HFWA. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,206,766 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $54,066,000 after buying an additional 465,708 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Heritage Financial by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,068,354 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $50,674,000 after acquiring an additional 33,429 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,594,963 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,722,000 after purchasing an additional 4,012 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,249,905 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,623,000 after purchasing an additional 8,731 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Heritage Financial by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 433,678 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,625,000 after purchasing an additional 6,201 shares in the last quarter. 78.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Heritage Bank that provides various financial services to small and medium sized businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, such as noninterest demand deposits, interest bearing demand deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, personal checking accounts, and certificates of deposit.