WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Hits New 1-Year Low - Here's Why

Shares of WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $23.91 and last traded at $26.43, with a volume of 955177 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.79.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on WAFD shares. Piper Sandler dropped their target price 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 issued a $29.00 price target on shares of WaFd in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of WaFd from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of WaFd from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, DA Davidson downgraded shares of WaFd from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $35.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.50.

WaFd Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $28.34 and a 200 day moving average of $31.96. The company has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a PE ratio of 12.63 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 (NASDAQ:WAFD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.05. WaFd had a net margin of 12.66% and a return on equity of 8.78%. The firm had revenue of $179.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $184.17 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that WaFd, Inc will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WaFd Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from WaFd's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. WaFd's payout ratio is 49.77%.

Institutional Trading of WaFd

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd boosted its position in WaFd by 983.5% in the fourth quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 1,116 shares of the bank's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,013 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its stake in shares of WaFd by 112.7% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the bank's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of WaFd by 29.6% in 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. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in WaFd by 68.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,000 shares of the bank's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 812 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in WaFd by 136.7% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,638 shares of the bank's stock valued at $117,000 after buying an additional 2,101 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company's stock.

WaFd Company Profile

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.