Zacks Research Upgrades FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) to “Hold”

FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on FSBW. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of FS Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Brean Capital lowered FS Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $45.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of FS Bancorp in a report on Friday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, FS Bancorp has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.00.

FS Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of FSBW stock opened at $44.65 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $43.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.10. FS Bancorp has a one year low of $36.66 and a one year high of $45.85. The firm has a market cap of $331.75 million, a P/E ratio of 10.29 and a beta of 0.68.

FS Bancorp (NASDAQ:FSBW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08. FS Bancorp had a net margin of 14.88% and a return on equity of 10.86%. The firm had revenue of $5.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.00 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that FS Bancorp will post 4.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other FS Bancorp news, Director Terri Degner sold 1,694 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.72, for a total value of $72,367.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,175 shares in the company, valued at $92,916. The trade was a 43.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 12.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of FS Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FSBW. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of FS Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $21,213,000. De Lisle Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of FS Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $16,956,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of FS Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $2,150,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FS Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $1,793,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of FS Bancorp during the second quarter worth $893,000. 63.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FS Bancorp Company Profile

FS Bancorp, Inc is the bank holding company for 1st Security Bank of Washington, a community bank headquartered in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. Through its banking subsidiary, the company provides deposit, lending and other financial services to individuals, families and businesses.

1st Security Bank offers checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, commercial and small-business banking, residential and commercial real estate loans, construction financing, consumer loans and home equity products.