Timberland Bancorp (NASDAQ:TSBK) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

Timberland Bancorp (NASDAQ:TSBK - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Timberland Bancorp Trading Down 0.7 %

TSBK traded down $0.22 on Wednesday, reaching $30.48. 5,409 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,829. The company's 50 day moving average is $30.49 and its 200-day moving average is $30.46. The company has a market cap of $242.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.86 and a beta of 0.67. Timberland Bancorp has a twelve month low of $23.93 and a twelve month high of $33.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Timberland Bancorp (NASDAQ:TSBK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The savings and loans company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Timberland Bancorp had a net margin of 22.88% and a return on equity of 10.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Jonathan Arthur Fischer sold 2,044 shares of Timberland Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.09, for a total value of $67,635.96. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 4,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $150,559.50. This trade represents a 31.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Timberland Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Prospector Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Timberland Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $565,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Timberland Bancorp by 141.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 14,294 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 8,365 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its position in Timberland Bancorp by 52.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 19,643 shares of the savings and loans company's stock worth $595,000 after buying an additional 6,725 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Timberland Bancorp by 4.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,434 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $679,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Timberland Bancorp by 1.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 110,005 shares of the savings and loans company's stock valued at $3,329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.49% of the company's stock.

About Timberland Bancorp

Timberland Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Timberland Bank that provides various community banking services in Washington. It offers various deposit products, including money market deposit, checking, and regular savings accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. The company also provides one-to four-family residential, multi-family, and commercial real estate loans; and construction lending products, such as custom and owner/builder, speculative one- to four-family, commercial, multi-family, land development, and land development.