Brokers Issue Forecasts for WaFd’s Q3 Earnings (NASDAQ:WAFD)

WaFd, Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) – Zacks Research reduced their Q3 2027 earnings estimates for WaFd in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, June 23rd. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the bank will earn $0.83 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $0.84. Zacks Research has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for WaFd’s current full-year earnings is $3.27 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for WaFd’s FY2027 earnings at $3.35 EPS.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on WaFd from $30.50 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded WaFd from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of WaFd from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.80.

WaFd Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ WAFD opened at $37.74 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33 and a beta of 0.84. WaFd has a 12-month low of $26.31 and a 12-month high of $38.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.44.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $197.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.51 million. WaFd had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 18.25%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.17 earnings per share.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in WaFd by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,980,089 shares of the bank’s stock worth $159,514,000 after purchasing an additional 26,000 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in WaFd by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,077,059 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $62,914,000 after purchasing an additional 40,569 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its position in shares of WaFd by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,557,436 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,885,000 after purchasing an additional 8,039 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of WaFd by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,375,110 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,652,000 after purchasing an additional 145,646 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of WaFd by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,100,312 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,328,000 after purchasing an additional 137,525 shares during the period. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kim E. Robison sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.28, for a total value of $776,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 116,099 shares in the company, valued at $4,095,972.72. This represents a 15.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.49% of the stock is owned by insiders.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. WaFd’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.29%.

About WaFd

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.