Baird Financial Group Inc. Sells 20,674 Shares of WaFd, Inc. $WAFD

Baird Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 229,390 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 20,674 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in WaFd were worth $6,717,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WAFD. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in WaFd in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of WaFd by 42.8% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,174 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of WaFd by 712.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,901 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 1,667 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of WaFd by 232.4% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,978 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,383 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of WaFd by 83.0% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WAFD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded WaFd from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of WaFd from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of WaFd in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.00.

WaFd Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WAFD opened at $32.27 on Tuesday. WaFd, Inc. has a twelve month low of $23.75 and a twelve month high of $36.53. The firm has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.22 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a 50 day moving average of $30.24 and a 200 day moving average of $30.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The bank reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $187.62 million for the quarter. WaFd had a return on equity of 8.40% and a net margin of 16.02%. As a group, research analysts expect that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Investors of record on Friday, November 21st were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 21st. WaFd’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.91%.

Insider Transactions at WaFd

In other news, Director Sean Singleton sold 1,004 shares of WaFd stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.71, for a total value of $31,836.84. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 9,278 shares in the company, valued at $294,205.38. The trade was a 9.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Brent J. Beardall acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $16.85 per share, for a total transaction of $50,550.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 6,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,100. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 1.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.