Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 28,985 Shares of WaFd, Inc. $WAFD

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lessened its holdings in shares of WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) by 32.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 59,815 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 28,985 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.08% of WaFd worth $1,812,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WAFD. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased 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 last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its position in WaFd by 57.6% during the second quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,327 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of WaFd by 36.0% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,837 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of WaFd by 712.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,901 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,667 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of WaFd in the second quarter valued at about $102,000. 83.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at WaFd

In other WaFd news, CEO Brent J. Beardall bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $16.85 per share, for a total transaction of $50,550.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 6,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,100. This trade represents a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Cathy E. Cooper sold 5,300 shares of WaFd stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.77, for a total value of $178,981.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 94,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,199,876.35. The trade was a 5.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

WaFd Stock Performance

WAFD opened at $32.98 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. WaFd, Inc. has a 52-week low of $23.75 and a 52-week high of $34.29. The firm has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s fifty day moving average is $32.78 and its 200-day moving average is $31.26.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $188.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $193.36 million. WaFd had a net margin of 17.45% and a return on equity of 8.67%. Sell-side analysts expect that WaFd, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WaFd Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. WaFd’s payout ratio is currently 37.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $34.00 price objective on WaFd in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WaFd in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on WaFd from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on WaFd from $33.50 to $30.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.90.

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.