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

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $26.92 and last traded at $24.34, with a volume of 178786 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on HFWA shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Heritage Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Heritage Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Heritage Financial from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Heritage Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $29.00 target price on Heritage Financial in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $29.33.

Heritage Financial Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.84. The company has a market capitalization of $826.59 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.75 and a beta of 0.52.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 17.27% and a return on equity of 8.21%. The business had revenue of $65.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $65.25 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Heritage Financial Corporation will post 2.09 EPS for the current year.

Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 5th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 5th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Heritage Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Heritage Financial

In related news, President Bryan Mcdonald acquired 19,106 shares of Heritage Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $22.32 per share, for a total transaction of $426,445.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 31,363 shares in the company, valued at $700,022.16. This represents a 155.88% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heritage Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HFWA. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Heritage Financial by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in Heritage Financial by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 20,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 881 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC grew its holdings in Heritage Financial by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 12,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $295,000 after acquiring an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 35,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $868,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Heritage Financial by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 15,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 1,052 shares in the last quarter. 78.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Heritage Financial

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.