First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) Rating Lowered to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on MYFW. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Western Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Western Financial in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.33.

First Western Financial Stock Down 1.0%

MYFW stock opened at $25.72 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $249.74 million, a P/E ratio of 19.05 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.98. First Western Financial has a 1-year low of $17.52 and a 1-year high of $28.00.

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.13). First Western Financial had a return on equity of 5.09% and a net margin of 7.08%.The business had revenue of $26.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.50 million. Analysts expect that First Western Financial will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Scott C. Mitchell sold 3,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.96, for a total value of $76,144.88. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $129,935.08. This represents a 36.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David R. Duncan sold 8,626 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.56, for a total value of $220,480.56. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 36,964 shares of company stock worth $938,485. 17.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Western Financial

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in First Western Financial by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 80,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,164,000 after purchasing an additional 2,959 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Western Financial by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 13,217 shares of the company’s stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 1,198 shares during the period. North Reef Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of First Western Financial by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 685,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,390,000 after buying an additional 68,130 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in shares of First Western Financial by 36.8% during the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 21,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $586,000 after acquiring an additional 5,872 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in First Western Financial by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 21,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,244 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About First Western Financial

First Western Financial, Inc (NASDAQ: MYFW) is a Denver-based bank holding company that, through its principal subsidiary First Western Trust, delivers a suite of personalized financial services. The company’s core activities center on wealth management and trust administration for high-net-worth individuals, families and institutions. In addition, First Western Financial offers a comprehensive range of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market funds and certificates of deposit—designed to meet the liquidity and income needs of its clients.

Complementing its deposit offerings, First Western Financial provides fiduciary and investment management services, including estate planning, charitable giving strategies and multi-generational wealth transfer.