WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $33.26 and traded as high as $37.30. WaFd shares last traded at $36.21, with a volume of 680,646 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on WAFD. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of WaFd from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research raised shares of WaFd from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of WaFd from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of WaFd from $30.50 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WaFd currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.80.

WaFd Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $35.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.26.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.09. WaFd had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 8.94%. The firm had revenue of $197.66 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $190.51 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.17 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that WaFd, Inc. will post 3.27 EPS for the current year.

WaFd Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. WaFd’s payout ratio is presently 35.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kim E. Robison sold 22,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.28, for a total value of $776,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 116,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,095,972.72. The trade was a 15.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WaFd

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAFD. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in WaFd by 3,620.0% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 930 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 905 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in WaFd by 42.8% in 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 in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in WaFd by 57.6% in the 2nd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in WaFd in the 3rd quarter worth $51,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.71% of the company’s stock.

WaFd Company Profile

Washington Federal, Inc, doing business as WaFd Bank, is a publicly traded bank holding company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Through its subsidiary, WaFd Bank, the company provides a range of banking and financial services to individuals, small-to-medium enterprises, and commercial clients. Established in 1917 as Ballard Savings & Loan in Seattle, the institution expanded over decades to serve customers across the Western United States under the Washington Federal name and has operated as a public company since the early 1980s.

WaFd Bank’s core offerings encompass deposit accounts such as checking, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit, alongside consumer and commercial lending products.