WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) Hits New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Shares of WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD) hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $24.65 and last traded at $24.61, with a volume of 222159 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.58.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAFD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson lowered WaFd from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $35.00 to $32.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of WaFd in a report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of WaFd from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of WaFd from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of WaFd from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.75.

WaFd Trading Down 5.0 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.06 and a 200 day moving average of $32.49. The firm has a market cap of $2.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

WaFd Increases Dividend

The firm 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.28%. This is an increase from WaFd’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. WaFd’s payout ratio is currently 49.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WAFD. Rhino Investment Partners Inc increased its position in WaFd by 344.3% during the fourth quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 454,343 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,648,000 after buying an additional 352,076 shares during the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of WaFd during the 4th quarter valued at about $9,210,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of WaFd by 152.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 469,704 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $15,143,000 after acquiring an additional 283,953 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in WaFd by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,774,081 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,196,000 after purchasing an additional 234,977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in WaFd during the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,539,000. 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.