Mark Raymond Gerke Sells 10,000 Shares of Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) Stock

Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBF) CFO Mark Raymond Gerke sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.34, for a total transaction of $183,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 30,034 shares in the company, valued at $550,823.56. The trade was a 24.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Waterstone Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WSBF opened at $18.56 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $18.19 and a 200-day moving average of $17.36. Waterstone Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $12.49 and a 12 month high of $18.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $335.01 million, a PE ratio of 11.18 and a beta of 0.74.

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The savings and loans company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.32). The firm had revenue of $35.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.80 million. Waterstone Financial had a return on equity of 8.48% and a net margin of 14.28%.

Waterstone Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 8th were paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. This is a boost from Waterstone Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 8th. Waterstone Financial’s payout ratio is 40.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Waterstone Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Waterstone Financial has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waterstone Financial by 557.9% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,875 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,590 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Waterstone Financial in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waterstone Financial during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Simplex Trading LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waterstone Financial by 69.3% during the fourth quarter. Simplex Trading LLC now owns 2,306 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 944 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waterstone Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $126,000. 62.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Waterstone Financial

Waterstone Financial, Inc is a bank holding company based in Glendale, Wisconsin, that provides a broad range of financial services to individuals, businesses and institutions. Its primary operations are conducted through its wholly owned subsidiary, Waterstone Bank, which offers deposit products, loan facilities and treasury management services. The company focuses on delivering relationship-based banking solutions tailored to the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises as well as retail customers.

In addition to traditional commercial and consumer banking, Waterstone Financial supports its clients with specialized financing, including real estate, equipment and asset-based lending.