Zacks Research Issues Negative Estimate for WaFd Earnings

WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD - Free Report) - Zacks Research cut their Q2 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of WaFd in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, December 18th. Zacks Research analyst S. Shah now forecasts that the bank will post earnings per share of $0.81 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.82. The consensus estimate for WaFd's current full-year earnings is $2.82 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for WaFd's Q4 2026 earnings at $0.82 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $3.22 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $3.34 EPS.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on WAFD. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of WaFd in a report on Monday, October 21st. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on WaFd from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. DA Davidson increased their price objective on WaFd from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of WaFd from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, WaFd has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $38.00.

WaFd Price Performance

Shares of WaFd stock traded up $0.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $32.64. 2,117,735 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 447,394. WaFd has a twelve month low of $25.78 and a twelve month high of $38.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $2.66 billion, a PE ratio of 13.16 and a beta of 0.84. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $35.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.59.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. WaFd had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 9.44%. The firm had revenue of $389.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. WaFd's payout ratio is 41.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Ryan Mauer sold 12,132 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.33, for a total value of $404,359.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 100,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,345,532.08. This trade represents a 10.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.25% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of WaFd by 80.8% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,188 shares of the bank's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 531 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its position in WaFd by 112.7% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the bank's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of WaFd by 515.8% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the bank's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,305 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in shares of WaFd by 100.0% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,644 shares of the bank's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in WaFd by 60.1% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,904 shares of the bank's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 715 shares during the period. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About WaFd

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.