StockNews.com Upgrades Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) to Buy

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

Waterstone Financial Trading Up 2.2 %

Waterstone Financial stock traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.78. The stock had a trading volume of 42,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 57,346. The stock has a market capitalization of $266.92 million, a PE ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 0.64. Waterstone Financial has a 12 month low of $10.60 and a 12 month high of $16.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.44.

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter. Waterstone Financial had a net margin of 9.23% and a return on equity of 5.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waterstone Financial news, Director Stephen J. Schmidt sold 2,194 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.78, for a total value of $34,621.32. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 70,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,105,830.84. This trade represents a 3.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 32,472 shares of company stock valued at $480,119 over the last three months. Company insiders own 8.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Waterstone Financial

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Waterstone Financial by 0.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 462,234 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $6,795,000 after acquiring an additional 3,799 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waterstone Financial by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 205,165 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $3,016,000 after purchasing an additional 33,305 shares in the last quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waterstone Financial by 165.0% during the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 90,826 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 56,554 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Waterstone Financial by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 77,773 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 3,705 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in Waterstone Financial by 26.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 71,039 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $1,044,000 after purchasing an additional 14,919 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.71% of the company’s stock.

Waterstone Financial Company Profile

Waterstone Financial, Inc operates as a bank holding company for WaterStone Bank SSB that provides various financial services to customers in southeastern Wisconsin, the United States. It operates in two segments, Community Banking and Mortgage Banking. The Community Banking segment offers consumer and business banking products and services, such as deposit and transactional solutions, including checking accounts, online banking and bill pay services, money transfer services, as well as credit, debit, and pre-paid cards; investable funds solutions comprising savings, money market deposits, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit; residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, personal and installment loans, real estate financing, business loans, and business lines of credit; and fixed and variable annuities, insurance products, and trust and investment management accounts.