Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Stock Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $22.68 and traded as high as $23.31. Heritage Financial shares last traded at $23.08, with a volume of 149,212 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on HFWA. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Heritage Financial from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Stephens increased their target price on shares of Heritage Financial from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Heritage Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $25.00.

Heritage Financial Stock Down 2.9 %

The business's 50 day moving average is $25.39 and its 200-day moving average is $22.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $788.27 million, a PE ratio of 21.37 and a beta of 0.57.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $81.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.17 million. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 7.01%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Heritage Financial Co. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. Heritage Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 85.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Tony Chalfant sold 2,975 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total value of $78,837.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,119 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $533,153.50. This represents a 12.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC increased its stake in Heritage Financial by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 481 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,796 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 123,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,684,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Heritage Financial by 43.7% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,975 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Heritage Financial in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.30% of the company's stock.

About Heritage Financial

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.