Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA) Shares Bought by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA - Free Report) by 83.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 225,948 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 102,665 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.66% of Heritage Financial worth $5,536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Heritage Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $157,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Heritage Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $166,000. Zions Bancorporation N.A. purchased a new stake in Heritage Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $168,000. Aspire Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Heritage Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $215,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Heritage Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $229,000. 78.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Heritage Financial Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of HFWA stock traded up $0.52 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $23.18. 16,216 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 207,591. The stock has a market cap of $787.91 million, a P/E ratio of 18.69 and a beta of 0.47. The stock's fifty day moving average is $23.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.16. Heritage Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $16.55 and a 52-week high of $27.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity at Heritage Financial

In related news, CFO Donald Hinson sold 3,420 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.59, for a total transaction of $80,677.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 42,087 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $992,832.33. This represents a 7.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Frederick B. Rivera sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.43, for a total transaction of $101,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,844 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $97,752.92. This trade represents a 50.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,311 shares of company stock valued at $369,193. Corporate insiders own 1.80% 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.