Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Announces Earnings Results

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $77.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.31 million. Heritage Financial had a return on equity of 8.61% and a net margin of 20.10%.

Here are the key takeaways from Heritage Financial’s conference call:

• Heritage closed the acquisition of Olympic Bancorp, adding ~$954M in loans and ~$1.39B in deposits and strengthening the bank’s presence in the Puget Sound market.
• Net interest margin improved to 3.96% (loan yield 5.73%) with management expecting continued margin expansion and a goal of reaching >4% by year-end driven by loan repricing and new originations.
• Merger-related charges and an upcoming systems conversion will lift noninterest expense, with Q2–Q3 run-rates of roughly $64–65M before falling to ~$56–57M in Q4 (post-merger run-rate ex-merger ~ $55M).
• Credit metrics remained strong—non-accruals fell to $15M (0.26% of loans), a $1.03M reversal of the allowance was recorded, and net charge-offs stayed very low (annualized ~0.04%).
• Deposits rose materially from the acquisition but organic deposits fell ~$61M (seasonal and CD maturities); management expects deposit cost to hover around ~1.7% amid competitive market pressures.

Heritage Financial Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of HFWA stock traded down $0.40 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $27.31. 37,803 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 292,364. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $26.47 and its 200-day moving average is $25.03. The company has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.93 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Heritage Financial has a fifty-two week low of $21.32 and a fifty-two week high of $28.98.

Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Heritage Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.98%.

Insider Transactions at Heritage Financial

In other news, Director Frederick B. Rivera sold 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.31, for a total transaction of $47,358.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $130,813.32. This represents a 26.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kelli Ann Wilson sold 1,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.48, for a total value of $50,312.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,041.44. The trade was a 33.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,368 shares of company stock valued at $226,740. Corporate insiders own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 27,871.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,951 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 99.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 1,431 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 117.1% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,457 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $205,000 after acquiring an additional 4,561 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Heritage Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 35.2% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 10,991 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 2,862 shares during the period. 78.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Heritage Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Heritage Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted Q1 earnings slightly beat expectations (adjusted EPS $0.59 vs. $0.57 consensus), showing operating profitability despite headwinds; management framed the Olympic acquisition as strategic for growth. Heritage Financial Corp (HFWA) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a regular cash dividend of $0.24 per share (yield ~3.5%), supporting income investors and indicating commitment to returning capital. Heritage Financial Announces First Quarter 2026 Results and Declares Regular Cash Dividend of $0.24 Per Share
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released slides and full earnings call transcript — useful for digging into loan mix, deposit trends, and merger cadence; analysts continue to model FY earnings (Street forecast cited ~2.53 EPS for the year). Heritage Financial Corporation 2026 Q1 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue for the quarter missed estimates ($77.9M reported vs. ~$80.3M expected) and GAAP net income declined sequentially, which may weigh on near‑term sentiment if revenue trends persist. MarketBeat Q1 coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Management expects elevated noninterest expense as Olympic acquisition integration continues (projecting ~$56M–$57M in noninterest expense in Q4), signaling one‑time and run‑rate costs that could pressure near‑term margins. Heritage Financial projects noninterest expense of $56M-$57M in Q4 as Olympic integration continues

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Heritage Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Stephens upped their target price on Heritage Financial from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Heritage Financial from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. DA Davidson upped their target price on Heritage Financial from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Heritage Financial from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Heritage Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.00.

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.