WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD) Holdings Cut by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD) by 59.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 138,147 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 198,655 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in WaFd were worth $4,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its position in WaFd by 112.7% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of WaFd by 29.6% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,752 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of WaFd by 68.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,000 shares of the bank’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of WaFd by 136.7% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,638 shares of the bank’s stock worth $117,000 after acquiring an additional 2,101 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in WaFd by 34.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,762 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 965 shares during the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WaFd Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ WAFD opened at $28.22 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. WaFd, Inc has a 12 month low of $25.79 and a 12 month high of $38.62. The company has a market cap of $2.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.00 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.67.

WaFd Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.83%. This is a boost from WaFd’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. WaFd’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAFD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of WaFd in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on WaFd from $42.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. DA Davidson downgraded WaFd from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $35.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on WaFd from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.75.

About WaFd

WaFd, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Washington Federal Bank that provides lending, depository, insurance, and other banking services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including business and personal checking accounts, and term certificates of deposit, as well as money market accounts and passbook savings accounts.