Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $28.60 and last traded at $28.29, with a volume of 13519 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.09.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HFWA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Heritage Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Zacks Research lowered Heritage Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Heritage Financial from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Stephens upped their target price on Heritage Financial from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Heritage Financial from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.25.

Heritage Financial Trading Up 1.3%

The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $966.57 million, a P/E ratio of 14.54 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $25.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.25.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.09. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 20.10% and a return on equity of 8.61%. The business had revenue of $66.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.95 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Heritage Financial Corporation will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Heritage Financial’s payout ratio is currently 48.98%.

Insider Transactions at Heritage Financial

In other news, EVP Tony Chalfant sold 4,668 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $129,070.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 19,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $549,405.50. This trade represents a 19.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kelli Ann Wilson sold 1,900 shares of Heritage Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.48, for a total transaction of $50,312.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,041.44. This trade represents a 33.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,368 shares of company stock valued at $226,740. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HFWA. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 316.9% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,651 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 27,871.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,951 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 99.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 1,431 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Heritage Financial by 20.8% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,171 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 891 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in Heritage Financial by 100.5% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 3,838 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.30% of the company’s stock.

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) is a bank holding company headquartered in Spokane, Washington. Through its primary subsidiary, Heritage Bank, the company provides a comprehensive range of banking and financial services to both individual and commercial clients. Heritage Bank’s offerings encompass deposit products, lending solutions, treasury and cash management services, mortgage banking, and wealth management, positioning the organization as a full-service community bank.

The company’s lending portfolio includes commercial real estate loans, agricultural loans, small business administration (SBA) loans, construction and development financing, and a variety of consumer mortgage products.